UC-NRLF 


2bl    flflZ 


MANUAL  OF  PARLIAMENTARY  PRACTICE. 

RULES 

OP 

PROCEEDING  AND  DEBATE 

IN 

DELIBERATIVE  ASSEMBLIES. 

BY  LUTHER  S.)  GUSHING. 


REVISED  TO  DATE 

BY  JOHN  JAMES  INGALLS, 

President  of  the  United  States  Senate,  1887-1891, 


ALSO  AN  APPENDIX  CONTAINING  THE  CONSTITUTION 
OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 


A.  L.  BURT  COMPANY 
PUBLISHERS         NEW  YORK 


(LA 


Copyright  1895,  by  A.  L.  BURT. 


EDITOR'S  PREFACE. 


LUTHER  STEARNS  GUSHING  was  born 
June  22,  1803,  in  Lunenburg,  Mass.,  and 
died  in  Boston,  on  his  birthday,  1856.  He 
was  clerk  of  the  house  of  representatives  of 
Massachusetts  in  1832,  judge  of  the  court  of 
common  pleas  in  1844,  and  reporter  to  the 
supreme  court  in  1848,  of  whose  reports 
eight  volumes  bear  his  name.  He  was  a 
learned  and  discriminating  jurist,  but  his 
chief  claim  to  distinction  rests  upon  his 
studies  of  parliamentary  law.  His  original 

Manual  for  Deliberative  Assemblies,"  was 
followed  by  the  great  work  on  the  "  Law  and 
Practice  of  Legislative  Assemblies  in  the 
United  States/7  which  is  recognized  as 
standard  authority  in  the  common  law 
governing  the  organization  and  procedure 
of  parliamentary  bodies. 

It  is  important  to  remember,  however,  that 
rules  of  order  and  debate  have  only  the  force 
of  precedent  and  example,  and  none  of  the 


iv  EDITOR'S  PREFACE. 

sanctions  of  statute.  Every  deliberative 
body  is  a  law  unto  itself,  and  its  authority 
over  its  own  modes  of  action  is  supreme. 
The  rules  of  parliaments,  congresses  and 
legislatures,  like  the  charters  of  nations,  are 
voluntary  concessions  for  the  protection  of 
minorities.  Majorities  can  take  care  of 

themselves. 

JOHN  J.  INGALLS. 

OAK  RIDGE,  ATCHISON,  KAN.,  ? 
January  24, 1895.  f 


PREFACE  TO  FIRST  EDITION. 


THE  following  treatise  forms  a  part  only 
Ipf  a  much  larger  and  more  comprehensive 
Dwork,  covering  the  whole  ground  of  parlia- 
^mentary  law  and  practice,  which  the  author 
has  for  some  time  been  engaged  in  preparing; 
and  which  it  is  his  intention  to  complete  and 
publish  as  soon  as  possible.     In    the   mean- 
^time,  this  little   work   has   been   compiled, 
chiefly  from  the  larger,  at  the  request  of  the 
^publishers,  and  to  supply  a  want,  which  was 
^supposed  to  exist  to  a  considerable  extent. 
£     The  treatise  now  presented  to  the  public, 
is  intended   as  a  Manual  for  Deliberative 
Assemblies   of  every  description,  but   more 
especially  for  those  which  are  not  legislative 
in  their  character  ;  though,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  principal  points,  in  which  legis- 
lative bodies  differ  from  others,  namely,  the 
several  different  stages  or  readings  of  a  bill, 
and   conferences  and  amendments   between 


VI  PREFACE   TO   FIRST   EDITION". 

the  two  branches,  this  work  will  be  found 
equally  useful  in  legislative  assemblies  as  in 
others. 

The  only  work  which  has  hitherto  been  in 
general  use  in  this  country,  relating  to  the 
proceedings  of  legislative  assemblies,  is  the 
compilation  originally  prepared  by  Mr. 
Jefferson,  when  Yice-President  of  the  United 
States,  for  the  use  of  the  body  over  which  he 
presided,  and  which  is  familiarly  known  as 
Jefferson's  Manual.  This  work,  having  been 
extensively  used  in  our  legislative  bodies, 
and,  in  some  States,  expressly  sanctioned  by 
law,  may  be  said  to  form,  as  it  were,  the 
basis  of  the  common  parliamentary  law  of 
this  country,  Kegarding  it  in  that  light, 
the  author  of  the  following  treatise  has  con- 
sidered the  principles  and  rules  laid  down  by 
Mr.  Jefferson  (and  which  have  been  adopted 
by  him  chiefly  from  the  elaborate  work  of 
Mr.  Hatsell)  as  the  established  rules  on  this 
subject,  and  has  accordingly  made  them  the 
basis  of  the  present  compilation,  with  an  oc- 
casional remark,  in  a  note,  by  way  of  expla- 
nation or  suggestion,  whenever  he  deemed  it 
necessary. 

Members  of  legislative  bodies,  who  may 
have  occasion  to  make  use  of  this  work,  will 


PREFACE  TO   FIRST   EDITION.  vif 

do  well  to  bear  in  mind,  that  it  contains 
only  what  may  be  called  the  common  parlia- 
mentary law;  which,  in  every  legislative 
assembly,  is  more  or  less  modified  or  con- 
trolled by  special  rules.  L.  S.  C. 
BOSTON,  November  1, 1844. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


***  The  figures  refer  to  the  numbers  of  the  paragraphs. 

INTRODUCTION 1  to  15 

CHAPTER  I. — OF  CERTAIN  PRELIMINARY 

MATTERS 16  to  25 

SEC.  I.       Quorum 17  to  19 

SEC.  II.     Rules  and  Orders 20  to  22 

SEC.  III.  Time  of  Meeting 23 

SEC.  IV.  Principle  of  Decision 24  to  25 

CHAPTER  II.— OF  THE  OFFICERS 26  to  35 

SEC.  I.     The  Presiding  Officer 27  to  30 

SEC.  II.   The  Recording  Officer 31  to  35 

CHAPTER  III.— OF    THE     RIGHTS     AND 

DUTIES  OF  MEMBERS.  . .  36  to  42 

CHAPTER  IV.— OF  THE  INTRODUCTION  OF 

BUSINESS 43  to  58 

CHAPTER  V.— OF  MOTIONS  IN  GENERAL.  59  to  61 

CHAPTER  VI.— OF  MOTIONS  TO  SUPPRESS.  62  to  67 

SEC.  I.     Previous  Question 63  to  66 

SEC.  II.  Indefinite  Postponement 67 

CHAPTER  VII.— OF  MOTIONS    TO    POST- 
PONE   68  to  72 

CHAPTER  VIII.— OF  MOTIONS  TO  COMMIT  73  to  77 

CHAPTER  IX.— OF  MOTIONS  TO  AMEND.  .  78  to  133 
SEC.  I.  Division  of  a  Question.  ...  79  to  83 
SEC.  II.  Filling  Blanks 84  to  87 


X  TABLE   OF   CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   IX.— OF  MOTIONS  TO  AMEND 
— Continued. 

SEC.  III.     Addition    —    Separation   — 

Transposition 88  to  91 

SEC.  IV.     Modification,     etc.,    by    the 

Mover 92  to  93 

SEC.  V.       General    Rules    Relating  to 

Amendments 94  to  102 

SEC.  VI.     Amendments,   by    striking 

out 103  to  112 

SEC.  VII.  Amendments,  by  inserting.  .113  to  121 

SEC.  VIII. Amendments,    by     striking 

out  and  inserting 122  to  127 

SEC.  IX.     Amendments,  changing  the 

nature  of  a  question 128  to  133 

CHAPTER  X.— OF  THE  ORDER  AND  SUC- 
CESSION OF  BUSINESS.  .134  to  187 

SEC.  I.        Privileged  Questions 136  to  149 

Adjournment 137  to  140 

Questions  of  Privilege . . .  141 
Orders  of  the  Day 142  to  149 

SEC.  II.      Incidental  Questions 150  to  165 

Questions  of  Order, 151  to  154 

Beading  of  Papers 155  to  160 

Withdrawal  of  a  Motion. l§\  to  162 
Suspension  of  a  Rule  . .  163  to  164 
Amendment    of    Amend- 
ments  165 

SEC.  III.     Subsidiary  Questions 166  to  187 

Lie  on  the  Table 171  to  173 

Previous  Question 174  to  175 

Postponement 176  to  180 

Commitment 181  to  183 

Amendment 184  to  187 

CHAPTER  XL— OF  THE  ORDER  OF  PRO- 
CEEDING.  188  to  200 

CHAPTER  XII.— OF  ORDER  IN  DEBATE. 201  to  232 

SEC.  1.      As  to  the  Manner  of  Speak- 
ing  203  to  208 

SEC.  II.    As  to  the  Matter  in  Speaking. 209  to  214 


TABLE   OF.COXTE1STS.  XI 

CHAPTER  XII.— OF  ORDER  IN  DEBATE 
— Continued. 

SEC.  III.  As  to  Times  of  Speaking 215  to  219 

SEC.  IV.  As  to  Stopping  in  Debate 220  to  222 

SEC.  V.    As  to  Decorum  in  Debate.. .  .223  to  226 

SEC.  VI.  As  to  Disorderly  Words 227  to  232 

CHAPTER  XIII.— OP  THE  QUESTION  . . .  .233  to  249 
CHAPTER  XIV.— OF  RECONSIDERATION.  250  to  257 

CHAPTER  XV.— OF  COMMITTEES 258  to  311 

SEC.  I.      Their  Nature  and  Functions.  258  to  262 

SEC.  II.    Their  Appointment 263  to  272 

SEC.  III.  Their  Organization,  etc 273  to  285 

SEC.  IV.  Their  Report .286  to  296 

SEC.  V.    Committee  of  the  Whole 297  to  311 

CONCLUDING  REMARKS 312  to  315 

ADDITIONS  AND  CORRECTIONS 316  to  340 


APPENDIX. 

Constitution  of  the  United  States  of  Amer- 
ica  209  to  338 

The  Declaration  of  Independence  ....... .239 


PARLIAMENTARY 
PRACTICE. 

INTRODUCTION. 

1.  Organization  :    Objects  of.  —  The 
purposes,  whatever  they  may  be,  for  which 
a  deliberative  assembly  of  any  kind  is  con* 
stituted,  can  only  be  effected  by  ascertaining 
the  sense  or  will  of  the  assembly,  in  reference 
to  the  several  subjects  submitted  to  it,  and 
by  embodying  that  sense  or  will  in  an  in- 
telligible, authentic,  and  authoritative  form. 
To  do  this,  it  is  necessary,  in  the  first  place, 
that  the  assembly  should  be  properly  consti- 
tuted and  organized;  and,  secondly,  that  it 
should  conduct  its  proceedings  according  to 
certain  rules,  and  agreeably  to  certain  forms, 
which  experience  has  shown  to  be  the  best 
adapted  to  the  purpose. 

2.  Organization :  May  be  Regulated 
by  Statute,  but  Usually  Voluntary. — 
Some  deliberative  assemblies,  especially  those 
which    consist   of    permanently  established 


2  PARLIAMENTARY   PKACTICE. 

bodies,  such  as  municipal  and  other  corpora- 
tions, are  usually  constituted  and  organized, 
at  least,  in  part,  in  virtue  of  certain  legal 
provisions;  while  others,  of  an  occasional  or 
temporal*}71  character,  such  as  conventions 
and  political  meetings,  constitute  and  organ- 
ize themselves  on  their  assembling  together 
for  the  purposes  of  then'  appointment. 

3.  Voluntary  Organization :  How 
Effected. — The  most  usual  and  convenient 
mode  of  organizing  a  deliberative  assembly  is 
the  following:  The  members  being  assembled 
together,  in  the  place,  and  at  the  time,  ap- 
pointed for  their  meeting,  one  of  them, 
addressing  himself  to  the  others,  requests 
them  to  come  to  order;  the  members  there- 
upon seating  themselves,  and  giving  their 
attention  to  him,  he  suggests  the  propriety 
and  necessity  of  their  being  organized,  before 
proceeding  to  business,  and  requests  the 
members  to  nominate  some  person  to  act  as 
chairman  of  the  meeting;  a  name  or  names 
being  thereupon  mentioned,  he  declares  that 
such  a  person  (whose  name  was  first  heard  by 
him)  is  nominated  for  chairman,  and  puts  a 
question  that  the  person  so  named  be  re- 
quested to  take  the  chair.  If.  this  question 
should  be  decided  in  the  negative,  another 


OFFICERS.  3 

nomination  is  then  to  be  called  for,  and  a 
question  put  upon  the  name  mentioned  (being 
that  of  some  other  person)  as  before,  and  so 
on  until  a  choice  is  effected.  When  a  chair- 
man is  elected,  he  takes  the  chair,  and  pro- 
ceeds in  the  same  manner  to  complete  the 
organization  of  the  assembly,  by  the  choice 
of  a  secretary  and  such  other  officers,  if  any, 
as  may  be  deemed  necessary. 

4.  Permanent  Organization  :  Method 
of    Perfecting. — An     organization,     thus 
effected,  may  be,  and  frequently  is,  sufficient 
for  all  the  purposes  of  the  meeting ;  but  if, 
for  any  reason,  it  is  desired  to  have  a  greater 
number  of  officers,  or  to  have  them  selected 
with  more  deliberation,  it  is  the  practice  to 
organize  temporarily,  in  the  manner  above 
mentioned,  and   then  to  refer  the  subject  of 
a  permanent  organization,  and  the  selection 
of  persons  to  be  nominated  for  the  several 
offices,  to  a  committee ;  upon  whose  report, 
the  meeting  proceeds  to  organize  itself,  con- 
formably thereto,  or  in  such  other  manner  as 
it  thinks  proper. 

5.  Officers :  Names  and  Functions  of. 
— The  presiding  officer  is  usually  denominated 
the  president)  and  the  recording  officer,  the 
secretary;  though,  sometimes,  these  officers 


4  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

are  designated,  respectively,  as  the  chairma 
and  cleric.  Ifc  is  not  unusual,  besides  iu 
president,  to  have  one  or  more  vice-presidents 
who  take  the  chair,  occasionally,  in  the 
absence  of  the  president  from  the  assembly, 
or  when  he  withdraws  from  the  chair  to 
take  part  in  the  proceedings  as  a  member; 
but  who,  at  other  times,  though  occupying 
seats  with  the  president,  act  merely  as  mem- 
bers. It  is  frequently  the  case,  also,  that 
several  persons  are  appointed  secretaries,  in 
which  case,  the  first  named  is  considered  as 
the  principal  officer.  All  the  officers  are, 
ordinarily,  members  of  the  assembly;*  and, 
as  such,  entitled  to  participate  in  the  pro- 
ceedings; except  that  the  presiding  officer 
does  not  usually  engage  in  the  debate,  and 
votes  only  when  the  assembly  is  equally 
divided. 

6.  Right  of  Membership  :  Indispen- 
sable Preliminary  Question. — In  all 
deliberative  assemblies,  the  members  of 


*  In  legislative  bodies,  the  clerk  is  seldom  or  never  a  mem- 
ber;  and,  in  some,  the  presiding  officer  is  not  a  member;  as 
for  example,  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  the  Senate  of 
New  York,  and  in  some  other  state  senates. 

[In  preliminary  organization,  the  clerk  is  usually  a  member. 
The  presiding  officer  is  always  a  member  except  when  other- 
wise provided  by  constitution  or  statute.— J.  J.  I.] 


BIGHT   OF  MEMBERSHIP.  5 

which  are  chosen  or  appointed  to  represent 
.others,  it  is  necessary,  before  proceeding 
f  to  business,  to  ascertain  who  are  duly  elected 
and  returned  as  members;  in  order  not  only 
'that  no  person  may  be  admitted  to  participate 
in  the  proceedings  who  is  not  regularly 
authorized  to  do  so,  but  also  that  a  list  of 
the  members  may  be  made  for  the  use  of  the 
assembly  and  its  officers. 

7.  Right  of  Membership:   How  and 
When  Ascertained. — The  proper  time  for 
this  investigation  is  after  the  temporary  and 
before  the  permanent  organization;  or,  when 
the  assembly  is  permanently  organized,  in 
the  first  instance,  before  it  proceeds  to  the 
transaction  of  any  other  business;  and  the 
most  convenient  mode  of  conducting  it  is  by 
the  appointment  of  a  committee,  to  receive 
and  report  upon  the  credentials  of  the  mem- 
bers.    The  same    committee    may   also    bo 
charged    with    the    investigation    of    rival 
claims,  where  any  such  are  presented. 

8.  Right    of  Membership:  Order  of 
Proceedings  Concerning. — When  a  ques- 
tion arises,  involving  the  right  of  a  member 
to  his  seat  such,  member  is  entitled  to  be 
heard   on  the  question,  and   he  is  then  to 
withdraw    from    the    assembly    until    it  is 


6  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

decided;  but  if,  by  the  indulgence  of  the 
assembly,  he  remains  in  his  place,  during  the 
discussion,  he  ought  neither  to  take  any 
further  part  in  it,  nor  to  vote  when  the 
question  is  proposed;  it  being  a  fundamental 
rule  of  all  deliberative  assemblies,  that  those 
members,  whose  rights  as  such  are  not  yet  set 
aside,  constitute  a  judicial  tribunal  to  decide 
upon  the  cases  of  those  whose  rights  of  mem- 
bership are  called  in  question.  Care  should 
always  be  taken,  therefore,  in  the  selection 
of  the  officers,  and  in  the  appointment  of 
committees,  to  name  only  those  persons 
whose  rights  as  members  are  not  objected  to. 

9.  Right  to  Preserve  Order:  Absolute 
and  by  Force  if  Necessary.— The  place 
where  an  assembly  is   held  being  in  its  pos- 
session, and  rightfully  appropriated  to  its  use, 
no  person  is  entitled  to  be  present  therein, 
but  by  the  consent  of  the  assembly;   and, 
consequently,  if  any  person  refuse  to  with- 
draw, when  ordered  to  do  so,    or  conduct 
himself  in  a  disorderly  or  improper  manner, 
the   assembly    may  unquestionably  employ 
sufficient  force  to  remove  such  person  from 
the  meeting. 

10.  Special  Rules  and  Regulations: 
Supersede      Common     Parliamentary 


GENERAL   PARLIAMENTARY   LAW.  7 

Law. — Every  deliberative  assembly,  by  the 
mere  fact  of  its  being  assembled  and  consti- 
tuted, does  thereby  necessarily  adopt  and 
become  subject  to  those  rules  and  forms  of 
proceeding,  without  which  it  would  be  impos- 
sible for  it  to  accomplish  the  purposes  of 
its  creation.  It  is  perfectly  competent,  how- 
ever, for  every  such  body — and  where  the 
business  is  of  considerable  interest  and  im- 
portance, or  likely  to  require  some  time  for 
its  accomplishment,  it  is  not  unusual — to 
adopt  also  certain  special  rules  for  the  regu- 
lation of  its  proceedings.  Where  this  is  the 
case,  these  latter  supersede  the  ordinary  par- 
liamentary rules,  in  reference  to  all  points  to 
which  they  relate;  or  add  to  them  in  those 
particulars  in  reference  to  which  there  is  no 
parliamentary  rule;  leaving  what  may  be 
called  the  common  parliamentary  law  in  full 
force  in  all  other  respects. 

ii.  General  Parliamentary  Law: 
Whence  Derived  and  How  Modified. — 
The  rules  of  parliamentary  proceedings  in 
this  country  are  derived  from,  and  essentially 
the  same  with,  those  of  the  British  .parlia- 
ment; though,  in  order  to  adapt  these  rules 
to  the  circumstances  and  wants  of  our  legis- 
lative assemblies,  they  have,  in  some  few 


8  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

respects,  been  changed, — in  others,  dif- 
ferently applied, — and  in  others,  again, 
extended  beyond  their  original  intention. 
To  these  rules,  each  legislative  assembly  is 
accustomed  to  add  a  code  of  its  own,  by 
which,  in  conjunction  with  the  former,  its 
proceedings  are  regulated.  The  rules,  thus 
adopted  by  the  several  legislative  assemblies, 
having  been  renewed  in  successive  legisla- 
tures,— with  such  extensions,  modifications 
and  additions  as  have  been,  from  time  to  time, 
thought  necessary, — the  result  is,  that  a 
system  of  parliamentary  rules  has  been  estab- 
lished in  each  state,  different  in  some  par- 
ticulars from  those  of  every  other  state,  but 
yet  founded  in  and  embracing  all  the  essential 
rules  of  the  common  parliamentary  law. 

12.  General  Procedure  and  Special 
Rules  :  Simultaneous  Government  by,. 
Incompatible. — The  rules  of  proceeding,  in 
each  state,  being  of  course  best  known  by 
the  citizens  of  that  state,  it  has  sometimes 
happened  in  deliberative  assemblies,  that  the 
proceedings  have  been  conducted  not  merely 
according  to  the  general  parliamentary  law, 
but  also  in  conformity  with  the  peculiar 
system  of  the  state  in  which  the  assembly 
was  sitting,  or  of  whose  citizens  it  was  com- 


OBJECT    OF    RULES  'OF   DEBATE.  9 

posed.  This,  however,  is  erroneous;  as  no 
occasional  assembly  can  ever  be  subject  to 
any  other  rules  than  those  which  are  of 
general  application,  or  which  it  specially 
adopts  for  its  own  government;  and  the  rules 
adopted  and  practiced  upon  by  a  legislative 
assembly  do  not  thereby  acquire  the  character 
of  generaHaws. 

13.  Conclusions  of  Body:  How  Ex- 
pressed.—Order,  Resolution  and  Vote: 
Difference    Between.  —  The   judgment, 
opinion,    sense,    or   will   of  a    deliberative 
assembly  is  expressed,  according  to  the  nature 
of  the  subject,  either  by  a  resolution,  order, 
or  vote.     When  it  commands,    it  is  by  an 
order;  but  facts,  principles,  its  own  opinions, 
or  purposes,  are  most  properly  expressed  in 
the  form  of  a  resolution;  the  term  vote  may 
be   applied  to  the  result  of  every  question 
decided    by    the     assembly.      In    whatever 
form,  however,  a  question  is  proposed,  or  by 
whatever  name  it  may  be  called,  the  mode  of 
proceeding  is  the  same. 

14.  Object  of  Rules  of  Debate  and 
Procedure:  To    Ascertain  the  Exact 
Judgment  of  Majority  of  Members. — 
The  judgment    or   will   of   any  number  of 
persons,  considered   as  an  aggregate  body, 


10  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

is  that  which  is  evidenced  by  the  consent  or 
agreement  of  the  greater  number  of  them; 
and  the  only  mode  by  which  this  can  be 
ascertained,  in  reference  to  any  particular 
subject,  is,  for  some  one  of  them  to  begin  by 
submitting  to  the  others  a  proposition,  ex- 
pressed in  such  a  form  of  words,  that,  if 
assented  to  by  the  requisite  number,  it  will 
purport  to  express  the  judgment  or  will  of 
the  assembly.  This  proposition  will  then 
form  a  basis  for  the  further  proceedings  of 
the  assembly;  to  be  assented  to,  rejected,  or 
modified,  according  as  it  expresses  or  not,  or 
may  be  made  to  express,  the  sense  of  a 
majority  of  the  members.  The  different 
proceedings  which  take  place,  from  the  first 
submission  of  a  proposition,  through  all  the 
changes  it  may  undergo,  until  the  final 
decision  of  the  assembly  upon  it,  constitute 
the  subject  of  the  rules  of  debate  and  pro- 
ceeding in  deliberative  assemblies. 

15.  Motions  and  Forms  of  Question  : 
Objects  and  Purposes  of.— If  the  proceed- 
ings of  a  deliberative  assembly  were  confined 
to  the  making  of  propositions  by  the  indi- 
vidual members,  and  their  acceptance  or 
rejection  by  the  votes  of  the  assembly,  there 
would  be  very  little  occasion  for  rules  in  such 


MOTIONS   AND   FORMS   OF   QUESTION.     11 

a  body.  But  this  is  not  the  case.  The  func- 
tions of  the  members  are  not  limited  to 
giving  an  affirmative  or  negative  to  such 
questions  as  are  proposed  to  them.  When 
a  proposition  is  made,  if  it  be  not  agreed  to 
or  rejected  at  once,  the  assembly  may  be 
unwilling  to  consider  and  act  upon  it  at  all; 
or  it  may  wish  to  postpone  the  consideration 
of  the  subject  to  a  future  time;  or  it  may 
be  willing  to  adopt  the  proposition  with  cer- 
tain modifications;  or,  lastly,  approving  the 
subject-matter,  but  finding  it  presented  in 
so  crude,  imperfect,  or  objectionable  a  form, 
that  it  cannot  in  that  state  be  considered  at 
all,  the  assembly  may  desire  to  have  the 
proposition  further  examined  and  digested, 
before  being  presented.  In  order  to  enable 
the  assembly  to  take  whichever  of  the  courses 
above  indicated  it  may  think  proper,  and 
then  to  dispose  of  every  proposition  in  a 
suitable  manner,  certain  motions  or  forms  of 
question  have  been  invented,  which  are  per- 
fectly adapted  for  the  purpose,  and  are  in 
common  use  in  all  deliberative  assemblies. 


12  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

OF  CERTAIN  PRELIMINARY 
MATTERS. 

16.  Preliminary. — Before  entering  upon 
the  subject  of  the  forms  and  rules  of  pro- 
ceeding,   in   the  transaction   of   business,  it 
will  be  convenient  to  consider  certain  matters 
of  a  preliminary  nature,  which  are  more  or 
less  essential  to  the  regularity,  despatch,  and 
efficiency  of  the  proceedings. 

SECTION  I.    QUORUM. 

17.  Presence  of  Quorum  :  Why  Es- 
sential.— In  all  councils,  and  other  collective 
bodies  of  the  same  kind,  it  is  necessary  that 
a  certain   number,  called   a   quorum,  of   the 
members,   should  meet   and   be   present,  in 
order  to  the  transaction  of  business.     This 
regulation  has  been  deemed  essential  to  secure 
fairness  of  proceeding;  and  to  prevent  matters 
from  being  concluded  in  a  hasty  manner,  or 
agreed  to  by  so  small  a  number  of  the  mem- 


QUORUM  13 

bers  as  not  to  command  a  due  and  proper 
respect. 

18.  Quorum  :  Number  to  Constitute, 
and  How  Fixed. — The  number  necessary 
to  constitute  a  quorum  of  any  assembly  may 
be  fixed  by  law  as  is  the  case  with  most  of 
our  legislative  assemblies;  or  by  usage,  as  in 
the  English  house  of  commons;  or  it  may  be 
fixed  by  the  assembly  itself;  but  if  no  rule  is 
established  on  the   subject,  in  any  of   these 
ways,  a  majority  of  the  members  composing 
the  assembly  is  the  requisite  number. 

19.  Quorum  :  Presence  of  Indispen- 
sable to  Transaction  of  Business. — No 
business  can  regularly  be  entered  upon  until 
a  quorum  is  present;  nor  can  any  business  be 
regularly  proceeded  with   when   it  appears 
that  the  members  present  are  reduced  below 
that   number;    consequently,  the    presiding 
officer  ought   not  to  take  the  chair  until  the 
proper  number  is  ascertained  to  be  present; 
and  if,  at  any  time,  in   the   course  of   the 
proceedings,  notice  is  taken  that  a  quorum  is 
not  present,  and,  upon  the  members   being 
counted  by   the  presiding   officer,  such   ap- 
pears  to  be   the  fact,  the  assembly  must  be 
immediately  adjourned,  or  absent   members 
may  be  sent  for  and  brought  in. 


14  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

SEC.  II.    RULES  AND  ORDERS. 

20.  Rules    and    Orders :    Power    of 
Assembly   Over. — Every   deliberative  as- 
sembly, as  has  already  been  observed,  is,  by 
the  fact  alone   of  its   existence,  subject  tot 
those   rules  of  proceeding,  without  which  it 
could  not  accomplish   the   purposes   of    its 
creation .     It  may  also  provide  rules  for  itself, 
either  in  the  form  of  a  general  code  estab- 
lished beforehand,  or  by  the  adoption,  from 
time   to   time,    during   its   sitting,   of   such, 
special  rules  as  it  may  find  necessary. 

21.  Rules  and  Orders:  How  Amended 
and  Repealed. — When  a  code  of  rules  is 
adopted  beforehand,  it  is  usual  also  to  pro- 
vide therein  as  to  the  mode  in  which  they 
may  be  amended,  repealed,  or  dispensed  with. 
Where  there  is  no  such  provision,  it  will  be 
competent  for   the   assembly  to  act   at    any 
time,  and  in  the  usual  manner,  upon  questions 
of  amendment  or  repeal;  but  in  reference  to 
dispensing  with  a  rule,  or  suspending  it,  in  a 
particular  case,  if  there  is  no  express  pro- 
vision on  the  subject,  it  seems  that  it  can 
only  be  done  by  general  consent.    [^  316]. 

22.  Rules  and  Orders  :  How,  When 
and  by  Whom  Enforced.-— When  any  of 


PRINCIPLE   OF   DECISIOX.  15 

the  rules,  adopted  by  the  assembly,  or  in 
force,  relative  to  its  manner  of  proceeding, 
is  disregarded  or  infringed,  every  member 
has  the  right  to  take  notice  thereof,  and  to 
require  that  the  presiding  officer,  or  any 
other  whose  duty  it  is,  shall  carry  such  rule 
into  execution;  and,  in  that  case,  the  rule 
must  be  enforced,  at  once,  without  debate  or 
delay.  It  is  then  too  late  to  alter,  repeal,  or 
suspend  the  rule;  so  long  as  any  one  member 
insists  upon  its  execution,  it  must  be  enforced. 

SEC  III.    TIME  OF  MEETING. 

23.  Time    of  Daily   Meeting :    How 
and  When  Determined. — Every  assembly, 
which  is  not  likely  to  finish  its  business  at 
one  sitting,  will  find  it  'convenient  to   come 
to  some  order  or  resolution  beforehand,  as  to 
the  time  of  reassembling,  after  an   adjourn- 
ment; it  being  generally  embarrassing  to  fix 
upon  the  hour  for  this  purpose,  at  the  time 
when  the  sitting  is  about  to  close,  and  in  con- 
nection with  the  motion  to  adjourn. 

SEC.  IV.     PRINCIPLE  OF 
DECISION. 

24.  Rule  of  Majority:   Fundamental 
Principle  of  All  Decisions.— The  priu- 


16  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

ciple,  upon  which  the  decisions  of  all  aggre- 
gate bodies,  such  as  councils,  corporations, 
and  deliberative  assemblies,  are  made,  is  that 
of  the  majority  of  votes  or  suffrages;  and 
this  rule  holds  not  only  in  reference  to  ques- 
tions and  subjects,  which  admit  only  of  an 
affirmative  on  one  side,  and  a  negative  on  the 
other,  but  also  in  reference  to  elections  in 
which  more  than  two  persons  may  receive  the 
suffrages. 

25.  Rule  of  Majority:  Prevails  Only 
in  Absence  of  Special  Rule  Directing 
Otherwise. — But  this  rnle  may  be  con- 
trolled by  a  special  rule  in  reference  to  some 
particular  subject  or  question  ;  by  which 
any  less  number  than  a  majority  may  be  ad- 
mitted, or  any  greater  number  required,  to 
express  the  will  of  the  assembly.  Thus,  it 
*is  frequently  provided,  in.  legislative  assem- 
blies, that  one-third  or  one-fourth  only  of 
the  members  shall  be  sufficient  to  require 
the  taking  of  a  question  by  yeas  and  nays, 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  that  no  alteration 
shall  take  place  in  any  of  the  rules  and  orders, 
without  the  consent  of  a-t  least  two-thirds,  or 
even  a  large  number. 


PRESIDENT  AXD- SECRETARY".  19 


CHAPTER  II. 
OF  THE  OFFICERS. 

26.  President  and  Secretary  or  Clerk : 
Must  be  Chosen  by  Majority  Vote,  and 
Why. — The  usual  and  necessary  officers  of 
a  deliberative  assembly  are  those  already 
mentioned,  namely,  a  presiding,  and  a  re- 
cording, officer  ;  both  of  whom  are  elected 
or  appointed  by  the  assembly  itself,  and 
removable  at  its  pleasure.  These  officers  are 
always  to  be  elected  by  absolute  majorities, 
even  in  those  states  in  which  elections  are 
usually  effected  by  a  plurality;  for  the  reason, 
that,  being  removable  at  the  pleasure  of  the 
assembly,  if  any  number  short  of  a  majority 
were  to  elect,  a  person  elected  by  any  such 
less  number  would  not  be  able  to  retain  his 
office  for  a  moment;  inasmuch  as  he  might 
be  instantly  removed  therefrom,  on  a  ques- 
tion made  for  that  purpose,  by  the  votes  of 
those  who  had  voted  for  other  persons  on  the 
election;  and  it  is  essential  to  the  due  and 


^  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 


•>ry  performance  of  the  functions  of 
officers,  that  they  should   possess  the 
confidence  of  the  assembly,  which  they  can- 
not be  said  to  do  unless  they  have  the  suf- 
frages of  at  least  a  majority. 

SEC.   I.    THE   PRESIDING 
OFFICER. 

27.  Presiding  Officer:  Duties  of.— The 

principal  duties  of  this  officer  are  the  follow- 
ing:— 

To  open  the  sitting,  at  the  time  to  which 
the  assembly  is  adjourned,  by  taking  the 
chair  and  calling  the  members  to  order; 

To  announce  the  business  before  the  as- 
sembly in  the  order  in  which  it  is  to  be  acted 
upon; 

To  receive  and  submit,  in  the  proper  man- 
ner, all  motions  and  propositions  presented 
by  the  members; 

To  put  to  vote  all  questions,  which  are 
regularly  moved,  or  necessarily  arise  in  the 
course  of  the  proceedings,  and  to  announce 
the  result; 

To  restrain  the  members,  when  engaged  in 
debate,  within  the  rules  of  order; 

To  enforce  on  all  occasions  the  observance 
of  order  and  decorum  among  the  members; 


VICE-PRESIDENT.  19 

To  receive  all  messages  and  other  com- 
munications and  announce  them  to  the  as- 
sembly; 

To  authenticate,  by  his  signature,  when 
necessary,  all  the  acts,  orders,  and  proceed- 
ings of  the  assembly; 

To  inform  the  assembly,  when  necessary, 
or  when  referred  to  for  the  purpose,  in  a 
point  of  order  or  practice; 

To  name  the  members  (when  directed  to 
do  so  in  a  particular  case,  or  when  it  is 
made  a  part  of  his  general  duty  by  a  rule) 
who  are  to  serve  on  Committees;  and,  in 
general, 

To  represent  and  stand  for  the  assembly, 
declaring  its  will,  and,  in  all  things,  obeying 
implicitly  its  commands. 

28.  Vice-President :    When   to   Pre- 
side.— If   the  assembly  is  organized  by  the 
choice  of  a  president,  and  vice-presidents,  it 
is  the  duty   of  one  of  the  latter  to  take  the 
chair,  in  case  of  the  absence  of  the  president 
from  the  assembly,  or  of   his    withdrawing 
from  the  chair  for  the  purpose  of  participat- 
ing in  the  proceedings. 

29.  President  or  Chairman  Pro  Tern- 
pore  :  When  and  How  Chosen. — Where 
but  one  presiding  officer  is  appointed,  in  the 


PAKLIAMENTARY    PEACTICE. 

fc  instance,  his  place  can  only  be  supplied, 
in  case  of  his  absence,  by  the  appointment  of 
a  president  or  chairman  pro  temporej  and,  in 
the  choice  of  this  officer,  who  ought  to  be 
elected  before  any  other  business  is  done,  it 
is  the  duty  of  the  secretary  to  conduct  the 
proceedings. 

30.  Presiding  Officer :  Attitude  of. — 
The  presiding  officer  may  read  sitting,  but 
should  rise  to  state  a  motion,  or  put  a  ques- 
tion to  the  assembly. 

SEC.  II.     THE  RECORDING 
OFFICER. 

31.  Secretary  or  Clerk :  Duties  of.— 

The  principal  duties  of  this  officer  consist 
in  taking  notes  of  all  the  proceedings,  and 
in  making  true  entries  in  his  journal  of  all 
"  the  things  done  and  past  "  in  the  assembly; 
but  he  is  not,  in  general,  required  to  take 
minutes  of  "particular  men's  speeches,"  or 
to  make  entries  of  things  merely  proposed  or 
moved,  without  coming  to  a  vote.  He  is  to 
enter  what  is  done  and  past,  but  not  what  is 
said  or  moved.  This  is  the  rule  in  legis- 
lative assemblies.  In  others,  though  the 
spirit  of  the  rule  ought  to  be  observed, 
it  is  generally  expected  of  the  secretary, 


SECKETAEY   OR   CLERK    PRO   TEMPORE.    21 

that  his  record  shall  be. both  a  journal   and 
in  some  sort  a  report  of  the  proceedings. 

32.  Secretary  or  Clerk  :  Duties  of.— 
It  is  also  the  duty  of  the  secretary  to  read  all 
papers,  etc.,  which  may  be  ordered  to  be  read;} 
to  call  the  roll  of  the  assembly,  and  take  note! 
of  those  who  are  absent,  when  a  call  is  or-' 
dered;  to  call  the  roll  and  note  the  answers 
of  the  members,  when  a  question  is  taken  by 
yeas  and  nays;  to  notify  committees  of  their 
appointment  and  of  the  business  referred  to 
them;  and  to  authenticate  by  his  signature 
(sometimes  alone  and  sometimes  in  conjunc- 
tion with  the  president)  all  the  acts,  orders, 
and  proceedings  of  the  assembly. 

33.  Secretary  or    Clerk  :    Duties  of, 
Concerning  Books,  Papers  and  Docu- 
ments.— The  clerk  is  also  charged  with  the 
custody  of  all  the  papers  and  documents  of 
every  description,  belonging  to  the  assembly, 
as  well   as   the  journal  of  its  proceedings, 
and   is   to  let  none  of  them  be  taken  from 
the  table   by  any  member  or  other  person, 
without  the  leave  or  order  of  the  assembly. 

34.  Secretary  or  Clerk  Pro  Tempore  : 
How  and  When  Appointed.— When  but 
a  single  secretary  or  clerk  is  appointed,  his 
place  can  only  be  supplied,  during  his  ah- 


22  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

sence  by  the  appointment  of  some  one  to  act 
pro  tempore.  When  several  persons  are  ap- 
pointed, this  inconvenience  is  not  likely  to 
occur. 

35.  Secretary  or  Clerk:  Attitude  of.— 
The  clerk  should  stand  while  reading  or  call- 
ing the  assembly. 


ABSOLUTE  EQUALITY.  23 


CHAPTER  III. 

OF  THE   RIGHTS   AND  DUTIES 
OF  THE  MEMBERS. 

36.  Absolute  Equality  :  The  Founda- 
tion   of    Parliamentary    Codes. —  The 

rights  and  duties  of  the  members  of  a  deliber- 
ative assembly,  as  regards  one  another,  are 
founded  in  and  derived  from  the  principle  of 
their  absolute  equality  among  themselves. 
Every  member,  however  humble  he  may  be, 
has  the  same  right  with  every  other,  to  sub- 
mit his  propositions  to  the  assembly, — to 
explain  and  recommend  them  in  discussion, 
— and  to  have  them  patiently  examined  and 
deliberately  decided  upon  by  the  assembly; 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  the  duty  of 
every  one  so  to  conduct  himself,  both  in  de- 
bate, and  in  his  general  deportment  in  the 
assembly,  as  not  to  obstruct  any  other  mem- 
ber, in  the  enjoyment  of  his  equal  rights, 
The  rights  and  duties  of  the  members  require 
to  be  explained  only  in  reference  to  words 


24  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

spoken  in  debate  (whether  spoken  of  a  mem- 
ber or  otherwise)  and  to  general  deportment. 
The  first  will  be  most  conveniently  noticed 
in  the  chapter  on  debate  ;  the  other  will  be 
considered  in  this  place. 

37.  Decorum :  Why  Requisite  and 
How  Violated. — The  observance  of  de- 
corum, by  the  members  of  a  deliberative 
assembly,  is  not  only  due  to  themselves  and 
to  one  another,  as  gentlemen  assembled 
together  to  deliberate  on  matters  of  common 
importance  and  interest,  but  is  also  essential 
to  the  regular  and  satisfactory  proceeding  of 
such  an  assembly.  The  rules  on  this  subject, 
though  generally  laid  down  with  reference 
to  decorum  in  debate,  are  equally  applicable 
whether  the  assembly  be  at  the  time  engaged 
in  debate,  or  not;  and,  therefore,  it  may  be 
stated,  generally,  that  no  member  is  toj 
disturb  another,  or  the  assembly  itself,  by 
hissing,  coughing,  or  spitting;  by  speaking 
or  whispering  to  other  members;  by  standing 
up  to  the  interruption  of  others;  by  passing 
between  the  presiding  officer  and  a  member 
speaking ;  going  across  the  assembly  room, 
or  walking  up  and  down  in  it;  taking 
books  or  papers  from  the  table,  or  writing 
there. 


DISORDERLY   CONDUCT.  25 

38.  Breaches  of  Decorum  :  How  Ag- 
gravated.— All  these  breaches  of  decorum 
are  doubtless  aggravated  by  being  committed 
while   the   assembly   is  engaged   in  debate, 
though  equally  contrary  to  the  rules  of  pro- 
priety, under  any  other  circumstances.     As- 
saults,   by    one    member    upon    another, — 
threats, — challenges, — affrays,  etc.,  are  also 
high  breaches  of  decorum. 

39.  Decorum  :   Relation  of  the  Hat 
to. — It  is  also  a   breach  of  decorum   for  a 
member  to  come  into  the  assembly  room  with 
his   head   covered,  or   to   remove    from  one 
place  to  another  with  his  hat  on,  or  to  put 
his  hat   on   in  coming  in  or  removing,  or, 
until  he  has  taken  his  seat;  and,  in  many 
assemblies,    especially   those    which    consist 
of  a  small  number   of   members,  it   is   not 
the   custom   to   have   the   head   covered   at 
all.* 

40.  Disorderly  Conduct :  Proceedings 
Concerning. — In  all  instances  of  irregular 
and  disorderly  deportment,  it  is  competent 
for  every  member,  and   is  the  special  duty 
of  the  presiding  officer,  to  complain  to  the 

*  In  any  deliberative  or  legislative  assembly  in  the  United 
States  a  covered  head,  except  in  case  of  infirmity,  would  be 
regarded  as  disorderly. 


26  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

assembly,  or  to  take  notice  of  the  offense, 
and  call  the  attention  of  the  assembly  to  it. 
When  a  complaint  of  this  kind  is  made  by 
the  presiding  officer,  he  is  said  to  name  the 
member  offending;  that  is,  he  declares  to 
the  assembly,  that  such  a  member,  calling 
him  by  name,  is  guilty  of  certain  irregular 
or  improper  conduct.  The  member,  who  is 
thus  charged  with  an  offense  against  the 
assembly,  is  entitled  to  be  heard  in  his  place 
in  exculpation,  and  is  then  to  withdraw. 
Being  withdrawn,  the  presiding  officer  states 
the  offense  committed,  and  the  assembly 
proceeds  to  consider  of  the  degree  and 
amount  of  punishment  to  be  inflicted.  The 
assembly  may  allow  the  member  complained 
of  to  remain,  when  he  offers  to  withdraw  ; 
or,  on  the  other  hand,  it  may  require  him  to 
withdraw,  if  he  do  not  offer  to  do  so  of  his 
own  accord.  The  proceedings  are  similar, 
when  the  complaint  is  made  by  a  member, 
except  that  the  offense  is  stated  by  such 
member,  instead  of  being  stated  by  the  pre- 
siding officer. 

41.  Member  Directly  Concerned  in 
Matter  Pending:  Should  not  Attend, 
nor  Debate,  nor  Vote  upon  Question. 
No  member  ought  to  be  present  in  the 


BREACHES   OF   DECORUM.  27 

assembly,  when  any  matter  or  business  con- 
cerning himself  is  debating;  nor,  if  present, 
by  the  indulgence  of  the  assembly,  ought  he 
to  vote  on  any  such  question.  Whether  the 
matter  in  question  concern  his  private  inter- 
est, or  relate  to  his  conduct  as  a  member — 
as  for  a  breach  of  order,  or  for  matter  arising 
in  debate — as  soon  as  it  is  fairly  before  the 
assembly,  the  member  is  to  be  heard  in  ex- 
culpation and  then  to  withdraw,  until  the 
matter  is  settled.*  If,  notwithstanding,  a 
member  should  remain  in  the  assembly  and 
vote,  his  vote  may  and  ought  to  be  dis- 
allowed; it  being  contrary,  not  only  to  the 
laws  of  decency,  but  to  the  fundamental 
principle  of  the  social  compact,  that  a 
man  should  sit  and  act  as  a  judge  in  his 
own  case. 

42.  Breaches  of  Decorum :  How 
Punished. — The  only  punishments,  which 
can  be  inflicted  upon  its  members  by  a  de- 
liberative assembly  of  the  kind  now  under 
consideration,  consist  of  reprimanding, — ex- 
clusion from  the  assembly, — a  prohibition  to 
speak  or  vote,  for  a  specified  time, — and  ex- 
pulsion; to  which  are  to  be  added  such 

*  It  is  not  the  usual  practice  in  the  United  States  to  require 
an  interested  or  inculpated  member  to  withdraw. 


28  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

other  forms  of  punishment,  as  by  apology, 
begging  pardon,  etc.,  as  the  assembly  may 
see  fit  to  impose,  and  to  require  the  offender 
to  submit  to,  on  pain  of  expulsion. 


MODES  OF  COMMUNICATION.  29 


CHAPTER  IV. 

OF    THE   INTRODUCTION  OF 
BUSINESS. 

43.  Business  Proceedings :  How  In- 
itiated.— The  proceedings  of  a  deliberative 
assembly,  in  reference  to  any  particular  sub- 
ject, are   ordinarily  set   in   motion,   in    the 
first  instance,  by  some  one  of  the  members 
either    presenting    a    communication    from 
persons  not  members,  or  himself  submitting 
a  proposition  to  the  assembly. 

44.  Modes  of  Communication  :  Form 
and  Purpose  of. — Communications   made 
to  the  assembly  are  of  two  kinds,  namely, 
those  which  are  merely  for  its  information 
in  matters  of  fact,  and  those  which  contain 
a  request  for  some  action  on  the  part  of  the 
assembly,  either  of  a  general  nature,  or  for 
the   benefit   of   an   individual.     The    latter 
only,   as  they  alone   constitute  a    founda- 
tion for  future   proceedings,    require  to  be 
noticed. 


30  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

45.  Motions :   Form  and  Objects  of 

— Propositions  made  by  members  are  drawn 
up  and  introduced,  by  motion,  in  the  form 
which  they  are  intended  by  the  mover 
to  bear,  as  orders,  resolutions,  or  votes,  if 
they  should  be  adopted  by  the  assembly. 
These  propositions,  of  whatever  nature  they 
may  be,  are  usually  denominated  motions,, 
until  they  are  adopted;  they  then  take  the 
name  which  properly  belongs  to  them. 

46.  Right    to    Address    Assembly : 
How   Obtained. — When    a    member    has 
occasion  to  make  any  communication  what- 
ever to  the  assembly, — whether  to  present  a 
petition  or  other  paper,  or  to  make  or  second 
a  motion  of  any  kind,  or  merely  to  make  a 
verbal    statement, — as   well    as    when    one 
desires  to  address  the  assembly  in  debate,  he 
must,  in  the  first  place,  as  the  expression  is, 
( '  obtain  the  floor  "  for  the  purpose  he  has 
in  view.     In  order  to  do  this,  he  must  rise 
in  his  place,*  and,  standing  uncovered,  ad- 
dress himself  to  the  presiding  officer,  by  his 

*  In  the  house  of  representatives  of  Massachusetts,  where 
each  member's  seat  is  regularly  assigned  to  him,  and  num- 
bered, it  has  been  found  useful,  in  deciding  upon  the  claims 
of  several  competitors  for  the  floor,  to  prefer  one  who  rises 
in  his  place,  to  a  member  who  addresses  the  speaker  from 
the  area,  the  passageways,  or  the  seat  of  any  other  member. 


ILLUSTRATION.  31 

title;  the  latter,  on  hearing  himself  thus  ad- 
dressed, calls  to  the  member  by  his  name; 
and  the  member  may  then,  but  not  before, 
proceed  with  his  business. 

47.  Conflicting      Claims    to     Floor : 
How  Adjusted. — If  two  or  more   members 
rise  and  address  themselves  to  the  presiding 
officer,   at   the  same  time,  or  nearly  so,  he 
should  give  the   floor  to  the  member  whose 
voice  he  first  heard.     If  his  decision  should 
not  be  satisfactory,  any  member  may  call  it 
in  question,  saying  that  in  his  opinion  such 
a  member  (not  the  one  named)  was  first  up, 
and  have  the   sense  of  the  assembly  taken 
thereon,  as  to  which  of  the  members  should 
be  heard.     In  this  case,  the  question  should 
be  first  taken  upon  the  name  of  the  member 
announced  by  the  presiding  officer  ;  and,  if 
this  question  should  be  decided  in  the  nega- 
tive, then  upon  the  name  of  the  member  for 
whom  the  floor  was  claimed  in  opposition  to 
him. 

48.  Illustration. — The  mode  of  proceed- 
ing upon  such  communications  from  persons 
not  members,  as  are  above  alluded  to,  may 
be  explained  by  that  adopted  on  the  presen- 
tation of  a  petition  which  may  be  considered 
as  the  representative  of  the  whole  class  to 
which  it  belongs. 


32  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

49.  Petitions  :    Formality  Attending 
Presentation    of. — A  petition,  in  order  to 
be   received,    should    be   subscribed   by  the 
petitioner  himself,  with  his  own  hand,  either 
by  name  or  mark,  except  in  case  of  inability 
from  sickness,   or  because  the  petitioner  is 
attending  in  person;  and  should  be  presented 
or  offered,  not  by  the  petitioner  himself,  but 
by  some  member  to  whom  it  is  intrusted  for 
that  purpose. 

50.  Petition :    Substance    of    to    be 
Stated,  and  Propriety  of  Vouched  for.— 
The  member,  who  presents  a  petition,  should 
previously  have  informed  himself  of  its  con- 
tents, so  as  to  be  able  to  state  the  substance 
of   it,  on   offering   it   to   the  assembly,  and 
also    to  be  prepared  to  say,  if  any  question 
should  be  made,  than  in  his  judgment  it  is 
couched  in  proper  language,    and    contains 
nothing  intentionally   disrespectful   to    the 
assembly. 

51.  Petition:  Mode  of  Presentation 
Further  Explained.— Being  thus  prepared, 
the  member  rises  in  his  place,  with  the  peti- 
tion in  his  hand,  and  informs  the  assembly 
that  he  has  a  certain  petition,  stating  the 
substance  of  ifc,  which  he  thereupon  presents 
or  offers  to  the  assembly,  and,  at  the  same 


PETITION.  36 

time  moves  (which,  however,  maybe  done  by 
any  other  member)  that  it  be  received;  this 
motion  being  seconded,  the  question  is  put 
whether  the  assembly  will  receive  the  petition 
or  not.  This  is  the  regular  course  of  pro- 
ceeding; but,  in  practice,  there  is  seldom  any 
question  made  on  receiving  a  petition;  the 
presiding  officer  usually  taking  it  for  granted, 
that  there  is  no  objection  to  the  reception, 
unless  it  be  stated.  If,  however,  any  objec- 
tion is  made  to  a  petition,  before  it  has  been 
otherwise  disposed  of,  the  presiding  officer 
ought  to  retrace  his  steps  and  require  a  mo- 
tion of  reception  to  be  regularly  made  and 
seconded,  [f  317.] 

52.  Petition  :  Disposition  of. — If  the 
question  of  reception  is  determined  in  the 
affirmative,  the  petition  is  sent  up  to  the 
table  by  the  member  presenting  it;  and  is 
there  read  as  of  course  by  the  clerk.  It  is 
then  regularly  before  the  assembly,  to  be 
dealt  with  as  it  thinks  proper;  the  usual 
course  being  either  to  proceed  to  consider  the 
subject  of  it  immediately,  or  to  assign 
Borne  future  time  for  its  consideration,  or  to 
order  it  to  lie  on  the  table  for  the  examina- 
tion and  consideration  of  the  members  indi- 
viduallv. 


34  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

53.  Motions  and   Resolutions :   Pro- 
ceedings Concerning. — Whenever  a  mem- 
ber introduces  a  proposition  of  his  own,  for 
the  consideration  of  the  assembly,  he  puts  it 
into  the  form  he  desires  it  should  have,  and 
then  moves  that  it  be  adopted  as  the  resolu- 
tion, order,  or  vote  of  the  assembly.     If  this 
proposition  so  far  meets  the  approbation  of 
other  members,  that  one  of  them  rises  in  his 
place  and  seconds  it,  it  may  then  be  put  to 
the  question;  and  the  result,  whether  affirma- 
tive or   negative,  becomes   the   judgment  of 
the  assembly. 

54.  Motion  :  Should  be  in  Writing. — 
A    motion   must   be   submitted    in  writing; 
otherwise  the  presiding  officer  will  be  justified 
in  refusing  to  receive  it;  he  may  do  so,  how- 
ever, if  he  pleases,  and  is  willing  to  take  the 
trouble  himself  to  reduce  it  to  writing.  This 
rule    extends    only    to   principal     motions, 
which,  when    adopted,  become  the  act  and 
express  the  sense  of  the  assembly;  but    not 
to  subsidiary  or  incidental  motions  *  which 
merely  enable  the  assembly  to  dispose  of  the 
former  in  the  manner  it  desires,  and  which 
are  always  in  the  same  form.     In  the  case  of 

*Such  as,  to  adjourn, — lie  on  the  table,— for  the  previous 
question,— for  postponement,— commitment,  etc. 


MOTIOK.  35 

a  motion  fco  amend,  which  is  a  subsidiary 
motion,  the  rule  admits  of  an  exception,  so 
far  as  regards  the  insertion  of  additional 
words,  which,  as  well  as  the  principal  motion, 
must  be  in  writing. 

55.  Motion  :  Should  be  Seconded,  and 
Why.* — A  motion  must  also  be  seconded, 
that  is,  approved  by  some  one  member,  at 
least,  expressing  his  approval  by  rising  and 
saying,  that  he  seconds  the  motion;  and  if  a 
motion  be  not  seconded,  no  notice  whatever 
is  to  be  taken  of  it  by  the  presiding  officer; 
though,  in  practice,  very  many  motions, 
particularly  those  which  occur  in  the  ordi- 
nary routine  of  business,  are  admitted  with- 
out being  seconded.  This  rule  applies  as 
well  to  subsidiary  as  principal  motions.  The 
seconding  of  a  motion  seems  to  be  required, 
on  the  ground,  that  the  time  of  the  assembly 
ought  not  to  be  taken  up  by  a  question, 
which,  for  any  thing  that  appears,  has  no  one 
in  its  favor  but  the  mover.  There  are  some 
apparent  exceptions  to  this  rule,  which  will 
be  stated  hereafter,  in  those  cases,  in  which 
one  member  alone  has  the  right  of  instituting 

*  The  rule  requiring  a  motion  to  be  seconded  is  practically 
obsolete  in  the  United  States.  There  is  no  good  ground  for  it, 
and  it  should  be  abandoned  altogether. 


36  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

or  giving  direction  to  a  particular  proceeding; 
and  an  actual  exception  is  sometimes  made 
by  a  special  rule,  requiring  certain  motions 
to  be  seconded  by  more  than  one  member. 
[T  318.] 

56.  Motion  :  When  May  be  Debated. , 
— When    a    motion    has    been    made     and 
seconded,  it  is  then  to  be  stated  by  the  pre- 
siding officer  to  the  assembly,  and  thus  be- 
comes a  question  for  its  decision;  and,  until 
so   stated,  it  is  not  in  order  for  any  other 
motion    to  be  made,  or  for  any  member  to 
speak  to  it;  but,  when  moved,  seconded,  and 
stated   from    the   chair,  a   motion  is  in  the 
possession  of   the  assembly,  and   cannot  be 
withdrawn  by  the  mover,  but  by  special  leave 
of  the  assembly,  which  must  be  obtained  by 
a   motion    made   and   seconded  as  in  other 
cases.     [1"  319.] 

57.  Motion:    Must  be    Read  When* 
Presented  and  as  Often  as  Desired  for 
Information. — When  a  motion  is  regularly 
before  the  assembly,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  pre- 
siding  officer   to  state   it,   if  it  be  not  in 
writing,  or  to  cause  it  to  be  read,  if  it  be,  as 
often  as  any  member  desires  to  have  it  stated 
or  read  for  his  information. 


QUESTION    OR   MOTION. 

58.  Question  or  Motion  Pen 
Must  be  Disposed  of  Before  Anotner 
Can  be  Taken  Up. — When  a  motion  or 
proposition  is  regularly  before  the  assembly, 
no  other  motion  can  be  received,  unless  it  be 
one  which  is  previous  in  its  nature  to  the 
question  under  consideration,  and  conse- 
quently entitled  to  take  its  place  for  the  time 
being,  and  be  first  decided. 


38  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 


CHAPTER  V. 

OF  MOTIONS  IN  GENERAL. 

59.  Subsidiary  Questions  and  Mo- 
tions :  What  Are. — When  a  proposition  is 
made  to  a  deliberative  assembly,  for  its  adop- 
tion, the  proposition  may  be  in  such  a  form 
as  to  be  put  to  the  question,  and  the  assem- 
bly may  be  in  such  a  state  as  to  be  willing  to 
come  to  a  decision  upon  it,  at  once;  and 
when  this  is  the  case,  nothing  more  can  be 
necessary  than  to  take  the  votes  of  the  mem- 
bers, and  ascertain  the  result.  But  a  dif- 
ferent state  of  things  may  and  commonly 
does  exist;  the  assembly  may  prefer  some  other 
course  of  proceeding  to  an  immediate  decision 
of  f-he  question  in  the  form  in  which  it  is 
presented;  and,  as  it  is  proper,  that  every 
parliamentary  body  should  have  the  means 
of  fitly  disposing  of  every  proposition  which 
may  be  made  to  it,  certain  forms  of  question 
have  from  time  to  time  been  invented,  and 


SUBSIDIARY   MOTIONS.  39 

are  now  in  general  use,  for  that  purpose. 
These  forms  of  question  may  properly  be 
called  subsidiary,  in  order  to  distinguish 
them  from  the  principal  motion  or  question 
to  which  they  relate. 

60.  Subsidiary  Motions  :  Four  Divi- 
sions of  Defined. — The  different  states  of 
mind,  in  which  a  proposition  may  be  re- 
ceived by  a  deliberative  assembly,  and  the 
corresponding  forms  of  proceeding,  or  sub- 
sidiary motions,  to  which  they  give  rise,  in 
order  to  ascertain  the  sense  of  the  assembly, 
are  the  following: — 

First.  The  assembly  may  look  upon  the 
proposition  as  useless  or  inexpedient;  and 
may  therefore  desire  to  suppress  it,  either  for 
a  time,  or  altogether.  The  subsidiary  mo- 
tions, for  this  purpose,  are  the  previous 
question  and  indefinite  postponement. 

Second.  The  assembly  may  be  willing  to 
entertain  and  consider  a  proposition,  but  not 
at  the  time  when  it  is  made;  either  because 
more  information  is  wanted  by  the  members 
individually;  or  because  they  desire  further 
time  for  reflection  and  examination;  or  be- 
cause the  assembly  is  then  occupied  with 
some  other  matter,  which  has  more  pressing 
claims  upon  its  present  attention.  The  usual 


40  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

motions,  under  such  circumstances,  are  post- 
ponement to  some  future  day  or  time,  and  to 
lie  on  the  table. 

Tfiird.  The  subject-matter  of  a  proposition 
may  be  regarded  with  favor,  but  the  form  in 
which  it  is  introduced  may  be  so  defective, 
that  a  more  careful  and  deliberate  consider- 
ation, than  can  conveniently  be  given  to  it  in 
the  assembly  itself,  may  be  necessary  to  put 
it  into  a  satisfactory  form.  In  this  case,  it 
is  most  proper  to  refer  the  proposition  to  a 
committee. 

Fourth.  The  proposition  may  be  accept- 
able, and  the  form  in  which  it  is  presented 
so  far  satisfactory,  that  the  assembly  may  be 
willing  to  consider  and  act  upon  it,  with  such 
alterations  and  amendments  as  may  be 
thought  proper.  The  motion  adapted  to  this 
case  is  to  amend. 

61.  Subsidiary  Motions:  Previous 
Statement  of,  Not  Exclusive  of  Others. 
— It  is  not  to  be  supposed,  that  the  sub- 
sidiary motions  above  specified  are  the  only 
ones  that  have  at  any  time  been  adopted  or 
used;  or  that  it  is  not  competent  to  a  delib- 
erative assembly  to  frame  new  motions  at 
pleasure;  but  these  are  the  forms  in  most 
common  use$  and  are  entirely  sufficient  for 


SUBSIDIARY  MOTIONS.  41 

all  practical  purposes.*  Neither  is  it  to  be 
supposed,  that  these  motions  are  always  ap- 
plied strictly  to  the  cases  to  which  they  most 
appropriately  belong;  several  of  them  are 
frequently  used  to  effect  purposes,  for  which 
others  would  be  more  proper.  There  mis- 
applications will  be  taken  notice  of,  under 
the  heads  of  the  several  motions. 


*  It  is  usual,  in  legislative  assemblies,  to  provide  by  a  special 
rule,  both  as  to  the  particular  motions  to  be  used,  and  the  order 
in  which  they  may  be  made.  Thus,  the  rule  in  the  house  of 
representatives  of  congress  (which  is  also  adopted  in  the 
house  of  representatives  of  Massachusetts),  is,  that,  "  when  a 
question  is  under  debate,  no  motion  shall  be  received,  but  to 
adjourn,  to  lie  on  the  table,  for  the  previous  question,  to  post- 
pone to  a  day  certain,  to  commit,  to  amend,  to  postpone  indefi- 
nitely, which  several  motions  shall  have  precedence  in  the 
order  in  which  they  are  arranged." 


PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 


CHAPTER  IV. 
OF  MOTIONS  TO  SUPPRESS. 

62.  Previous  Question  and  Indefinite 
Postponement :    Purpose   of. — When   a 
proposition  is  moved,  which,  it  is  supposed, 
may  be  regarded  by  the  assembly  as  useless 
or  inexpedient,  and  which  it  may  therefore 
be  desirous   to  get  rid  of,  such  proposition 
may  be   suppressed  for  a  time  by  means  of 
the   previous   question,  or   altogether   by   a 
motion  for  indefinite  postponement. 

SEC.    I.     PREVIOUS   QUESTION. 

63.  Previous  Question:  Originally  a 
Subsidiary  Motion  to  Suppress  of  Main 
Question,  But  Perverted  to  Suppress 
Debate. — The   original   and  proper  parlia- 
mentary use  of  the  previous  question  being, 
as  above  stated,  the  suppression  of  a  main 
question,  it  seems   proper   to  consider  it  as 
one  of  the  subsidiary  motions  for  that  pur- 
pose; although,  in  this  country,  it  has  been 


PREVIOUS   QUESTION.    ,  43 

perverted  to  a  wholly  different  use,  namely, 
the  suppression  of  debate.  This  consider- 
ation, in  connection  with  the  difficulty  of 
the  subject,  and  the  importance  of  a  correct 
understanding  of  it,  makes  it  proper  to 
devote  more  room  to  the  previous  question, 
than  needs  to  be  given  to  most  of  the  other 
subsidiary  motions.  It  will  first  be  con- 
sidered according  to  its  original  use  and 
intention;  and,  afterward,  as  used  in  this 
country. 

64.  Previous  Question :  Origin  of, 
How  Put,  and  Effect  of  in  Negative. — 
There  are  several  motions,  which  give  rise  to 
questions  previous  in  their  nature  to  other 
questions  to  which  they  relate;  but  the  term 
previous  has  been  applied  exclusively  to  a 
motion  denominated  the  previous  questian, 
which  has  for  its  object  the  suppression  of  a 
principal  motion  or  question.  This  motion 
was  introduced  into  the  house  of  commons, 
in  England,  more  than  two  centuries  ago, 
for  the  purpose  of  suppressing  subjects  of  a 
delicate  nature,  relating  to  high  personages, 
or  the  discussion  of  which  might  call  forth 
observations  of  an  injurious  tendency.  When 
first  made  use  of,  the  form  of  the  motion 
was,  shall  the  main  question  be  put?  and  the 


44  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

effect  of  a  decision  of  ifc  in  the  negative  was 
to  suppress  the  main  question  for  the  whole 
session.  The  form  of  it  was  afterward 
changed  to  that  which  it  has  at  present, 
namely,  shall  the  main  question  be  now  put  9 
and  the  effect  of  a  negative  decision  of  it 
now  is  to  suppress  the  main  question  for  the 
residue  of  the  day  only.  The  operation  of 
this  motion,  in  suppressing  the  question  to 
which  it  is  applied,  results  from  the  principle, 
that  no  further  consideration  or  discussion 
can  regularity  be  had  of  a  subject,  which  it 
has  been  decided  shall  not  be  put  to  the 
question;  and,  therefore,  when,  on  the  mo- 
tion of  the  previous  question,  it  has  been 
decided,  that  the  principal  question  shall  not 
now  be  put,  that  question  is  disposed  of  for 
the  day,  and  cannot  be  renewed  until  the 
next  or  some  succeeding  day.  This  is  the 
purpose  for  which  the  previous  question  was 
originally  invented,  and  for  which  it  is  still 
used  in  the  British  parliament. 

65.  Motion  for  Previous  Question  : 
Effect  of,  if  Decided  in  Affirmative. — 
But  the  previous  question,  may  be  decided 
in  the  affirmative,  as  well  as  the  negative, 
that  is,  that  the  main  question  shall  now  be 
put;  in  which  case,  that  question  is  to  be 


MOTION   FOR   PREVIOUS   QUESTION.       45 

put  immediately,  without  any  further  debate, 
and  in  the  form  in  which^  it  then  exists. 
This  operation  of  the  previous  question, 
when  decided  affirmatively,  has  led  to  the 
use  of  it  for  the  purpose  of  suppressing 
debate  on  a  principal  question,  and  coming 
to  a  vote  upon  it  immediately;  and  this  is 
ordinarily  the  only  object  of  the  previous 
question,  as  made  use  of  in  the  legislative 
assemblies  of  the  United  States.*  The 
operation  of  a  negative  decision  is  different  in 
different  assemblies;  in  some,  as,  for  example, 
in  the  house  of  representatives  of  congress, 
it  operates  to  dispose  of  the  principal  or 
main  question  by  suppressing  or  removing  it 
from  before  the  house  for  the  day;  but  in 
others,  as  in  the  house  of  representatives  of 
Massachusetts,  and  in  the  house  of  assembly 
of  JSTew  York  (in  the  former  by  usage  only, 
and  in  the  latter  by  a  rule),  the  effect  of  a 
negative  decision  of  the  previous  question  is 


*  Mr.  Jefferson  (Manual,  §  xxxiv.)  considers  this  extension 
of  the  previous  question  as  an  abuse.  He  is  of  opinion,  that 
"its  uses  would  be  as  well  answered  by  other  more  simple 
parliamentary  forms,  and  therefore  it  should  not  be  favored, 
but  restricted  within  as  narrow  limits  as  possible."  Notwith- 
standing this  suggestion,  however,  the  use  of  the  previous 
question,  as  above  stated,  has  become  so  firmly  established, 
that  it  cannot  now  be  disturbed  or  unsettled. 


46  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

to  leave  the  main  question  under  debate  for 
the  residue  of  the  sitting,  unless  sooner  dis- 
posed of,  by  taking  the  question,  or  in  some 
other  manner. 

66.  Previous  Question :  How  Em- 
ployed in  England  and  in  the  United 
States. — In  England,  the  previous  question 
is  used  only  for  suppressing  a  main  question; 
the  object  of  the  mover  is  to  obtain  a  deci- 
sion of  it  in  the  negative;  and  the  effect  of 
such  a  decision,  though  in  strictness  only  to 
suppress  the  question  for  the  day,  is,  practic- 
ally and  by  parliamentary  usage,  to  dispose 
of  the  subject  altogether.  In  this  country, 
the  previous  question  is  used  chiefly  for  sup- 
pressing debate  on  a  main  question;  the 
object  of  the  mover  is  to  obtain  a  decision  of 
it  in  the  affirmative;  and  the  effect  of  a 
decision  the  other  way,  though  in  some  as- 
semblies operating  technically  to  suppress  the 
main  question  for  the  day  only,  is,  in  general, 
merely  to  suspend  the  taking  of  the  question 
for  that  day;  either  leaving  the  debate  to  go 
on  during  the  residue  of  the  day,  or  the  sub- 
ject to  be  renewed  on  the  next  or  some  other 
day.  The  operation  of  an  affirmative  decision 
is  the  same,  in  both  countries,  namely,  the 
putting  of  the  main  question  immediately, 


MOTION   FOR   POSTPONEMENT.  47 

aiid   without  futher  debate,  delay,  or  con- 
sideration.* 

SEC.  II.    INDEFINITE  POST- 
PONEMENT. 

67.  Motion  for  Indefinite  Postpone- 
ment :  Object  and  Effect  of. — In  order 
to  suppress  a  question  altogether,  without 
coming  to  a  direct  vote  upon  it,  in  such  a 
manner  that  it  cannot  be  renewed,  the  proper 
motion  is  for  indefinite  postponement;  that 
is,  a  postponement  or  adjournment  of  the 
question,  without  fixing  any  day  for  resum- 
ing it.  The  effect  of  this  motion,  if  decided 
in  the  affirmative,  is  to  quash  the  proposi- 
tion entirely;  as  an  indefinite  adjournment 
is  equivalent  to  a  dissolution,  or  the  con- 
tinuance of  a  suit,  without  day,  is  a  discon- 
tinuance of  it.  A  negative  decision  has  no 
effect  whatever. 


*  In  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  the  previous  question 
cannot  be  moved,  and  the  only  limit  of  debate  is  exhaustion 
or  argument.  Originally  devised  to  retard  or  defeat  a  meas- 
ure, the  "  previous  question  "  has  gradually  developed  in  the 
United  States  into  a  proceeding  to  hasten,  and  secure  favor- 
able action  upon  it.  Instead  of  being  a  "perversion"  as 
described  by  the  author,  the  change  has  been  beneficent,  and 
the  motion  should  have  higher  privilege.— J.  J.  I. 


48  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 


CHAPTER  VII. 
OF  MOTIONS  TO  POSTPONE. 

68.  Motions  to  Postpone  and  to  Lay 
on  Table  :  Objects  of.— If  the  assembly 
is  willing  to  entertain  and  consider  a  ques- 
tion, but  not  at  the  time  when  it  is  moved, 
the  proper  course  is  either  to  postpone  the 
subject  to  another  day,  or  to  order  it  to  lie 
on  the  table. 

69.  Motion  to  Postpone  to  a  Future 
Day  :  Object  of. — When  the  members  in- 
dividually want  more  information  than  they 
possess,  at  the  time  a  question  is  moved,  or 
desire  further  time  for  reflection  and  exami- 
nation, the  proper  motion  is,  to  postpone  the 
subject  to  such  future   day  as  will  answer 
the  views  of  the  assembly. 

70.  Motion  to  Postpone  to  an  Impos- 
sible Future  Day  :  Improper  Use  of.— 
This  motion  is  sometimes  used  improperly, 
to   get  rid   of  a  proposition  altogether,  as 
would   be   done   by  an  indefinite  postpone- 


MOTION   TO   LAY    O]ST   THE   TABLE.         49 

ment.  This  is  effected  by  fixing  upon  a  day 
which,  according  to  the  common  course  of 
things,  will  not  arrive  until  after  the  assem- 
bly has  been  brought  to  a  close.  But  a 
motion,  worded  in  this  manner,  is  precisely 
equivalent  to  a  motion  for  indefinite  post- 
ponement, and  should  be  so  considered  and 
treated. 

71.  Motion    that     Matter     Lie     on 
Table  :  Purpose  an   Effect  of.— If  the 
assembly  has  something  else  before  it,  which 
claims  its  present  attention,  and  is  therefore 
desirous  to  postpone  a  particular  proposition, 
until  that  subject  is  disposed  of,  such  post- 
ponement  may  be   effected   by  means  of  a 
motion  that  the  matter  in  question  lie  on  the 
table.     If  this  motion  prevails,  the  subject 
so  disposed  of  may  be  taken  up,  at  any  time 
afterward,    and   considered,    when    it    may 
suit     the     convenience    of     the    assembly. 
[1  320.] 

72.  Motion  to  Lay  on    the    Table : 
Final  Disposition  of  Question  if  Not 
Afterward  Taken   Up.— This  motion  is 
also  sometimes  made  use  of  for  the  final  dis- 
position of  a  subject;  and,  it  always  has  that 
effect,  when  no  motion  is  afterward  made  to 
take  it  up. 


50  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
OF  MOTIONS  TO  COMMIT. 

73.  Motions  to  Commit  or  to  Refer : 
Object  of. — The  third  case  for  the  use  of  a 
subsidiary  motion,  as  already  stated,  occurs, 
when  the  subject-matter  of  a  proposition  is 
regarded  with  favor,  but  the  form  in  which 
it  is  introduced  is  so  defective,  that  a  more 
careful  and  deliberate  consideration  is  neces- 
sary, than  can  conveniently  be  given  to  it  in 
the  assembly  itself,  in  order  to  put  it  into  a 
satisfactory  form.     The  course  of  proceeding 
then  is,  to  refer  the  subject  to  a  committee; 
which  is  called  a  commitment,  or,  if  the  sub- 
ject has  already  been  in  the  hands  of  a  com- 
mittee, a  recommitment. 

74.  Motion    to    Commit :    Selection 
between    Standing  and  Select    Com- 
mittee-— If  there  is  a  standing  committee 
of   the   assembly,  whose   functions  embrace 
the  subject  in  question,  the  motion  should 
be  to  refer  it  to  that  committee;  if  there  is 


MOTION   TO   COMMIT.  51 

no  such  committee,  then  the  motion  should 
be  to  refer  to  a  select  committee.  If  it  is  a 
matter  of  doubt,  whether  a  particular  stand- 
ing committee  is  appropriate  or  not,  and 
propositions  are  made  for  a  reference  to  that 
committee,  and  also  for  a  reference  to  a  select 
committee,  the  former  proposition  should  be 
first  put  to  the  question. 

75.  Motion  to  Commit :  May  be  With 
Instructions  or  Without.— When  a  sub- 
ject is  referred  or  recommitted,  the  committee 
may  be  instructed  or  ordered  by  the  assem- 
bly, as  to  any  part  or  the  whole  of  the  duties 
assigned  them;  or  the  subject  may  be  left 
with   them    without    instructions.     In    the 
former    case,    the     instructions     must     be 
obeyed,  of   course;  in   the   latter,  the   com- 
mittee have  full  power  over  the  matter,  and 
may   report   upon   it,  in   any   manner  they 
please,  provided  they  keep  within  the  recog- 
nized forms  of   parliamentary   proceedings. 
[1  321.] 

76,  Motion  to  Commit :  May  Affect 
Part  of  Subject  or  All,  and  May  be  to 
Different  Committees. — A  part  only  of  a 
subject  may  be  committed,  without  the  resi- 
due; or  different  parts  may  be  committed  to 
different  committees. 


53  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

77.  Motion  to  Commit  with  Instruc- 
tions :  Uses  of. — A  commitment  with  in- 
structions is  some  times  made  use  of,  as  a 
convenient  mode  of  procuring  further  in- 
formation, and,  at  the  same  time,  of  post- 
poning the  consideration  of  a  subject  to  a 
future  though  uncertain  day. 


MOTIONS   TO   AMEND.  53 


CHAPTER  IX. 
OF  MOTIONS  TO  AMEND. 

78.  Motion  to  Amend  :  Object  of. — 

The  last  case,  for  the  introduction  of  sub- 
sidiary motions,  is  when  the  assembly  is 
satisfied  with  the  subject-matter  of  a  propo- 
sition, but  not  with  the  form  of  it,  or  with 
all  its  different  parts,  or  desires  to  make 
some  addition  to  it.  The  course  of  proceed- 
ing then  is,  to  bring  the  proposition  into 
the  proper  form,  and  make  its  details  satis- 
factory, by  means  of  amendments,  or  of  cer- 
tain proceedings  of  a  similar  character,  and 
having  the  same  general  purpose  in  view. 
The  latter  will  be  first  considered. 

SEC.    I.    DIVISION  OF    A   QUES- 
TION., 

79.  If  Question  Consists  of  Two  or 
More  Parts :   Separate  Vote  May  be 
Had  When. — When  a  proposition  or  mo 


54  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

tion  is  complicated,  that  is,  composed  of  two 
or  more  parts,  which  are  so  far  independent 
of  each  other,  as  to  be  susceptible  of  division 
into  several  questions,  and  it  is  supposed 
that  the  assembly  may  approve  of  some  but 
not  of  all  these  parts,  it  is  a  compendious 
mode  of  amendment,  to  divide  the  motion 
into  separate  questions,  to  be  separately  voted 
upon  and  decided  by  the  assembly.  This 
division  may  take  place  by  the  order  of  the 
assembly,  on  a  motion  regularly  made  and 
seconded  for  the  purpose. 

80.  Separate  Vote  Upon  Divided 
Question  :  Effect  of. — When  a  motion  is 
thus  divided,  it  becomes  a  series  of  questions, 
to  be  considered  and  treated  each  by  itself, 
as  an  independent  proposition,  in  the  order 
in  which  they  stand;  and  when  they  have 
all  been  gone  through  with  and  decided,  the 
result  will  be  the  same,  as  if  motions  to 
amend  by  striking  out  the  several  parts  had 
been  made  and  put  to  the  question.  When 
a  motion  for  a  division  is  made,  the  mover 
ought  to  specify  in  his  motion  the  manner 
in  which  he  proposes  to  make  the  division; 
and  this  motion,  like  every  other  of  the 
nature  of  an  amendment,  is  itself  susceptible 
of  amendment. 


DIVISION   OF   QUESTION.  55 

81.  Division  of  Question  and  Sepa- 
rate Vote :  Not  the  Right  of  Member 
to  Demand. — It  is  sometimes  asserted,  that 
it  is  the  right  of  every  individual  member  to 
have  a  complicated  question  (provided  it  is 
susceptible    of    division)    divided    into    its 
several  parts,  and  a  question  put  separately 
on  each,  on  his  mere  demand,  and  without 
any  motion  or  any  vote  of  the  assembly  for 
that  purpose.     But  this  is  a  mistake;  there 
is  no  such  rule  of  parliamentary  proceeding; 
a  complicated  question  can  only  be  separated 
by  moving  amendments  to  it  in  the  usual 
manner,  or  by  moving  for  a  division  of  it  in 
the  manner  above  stated. 

82.  Division  of  Question :    Rule  for 
on  Demand  of  Member,  Common.— It 
is  not  unusual,  however,  for  a   deliberative 
assembly  to  have  a  rule  providing  for  the 
division  of  a  complicated  question  (provided 
it  is  susceptible  of  division)  into  its  several 
parts,  upon  the  demand  of  a  member.    When 
this  is  the  case,  it  is  for  the  presiding  officer 
(subject  of  course  to  the  revision  of  the  as- 
sembly) to  decide,   when   the   division  of  a 
motion   is  demanded,  first,  whether  the  pro- 
position    is    susceptible    of    division,    and, 
secondly,  into  how  many  and  what  parts  it 
may  be  divided. 


56  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

83.  Division     of     Question :     When 
Allowable. — A  proposition,  in  order  to  be 
divisible,  must  comprehend  points  so  distinct 
and  entire,  that  if  one  or  more  of  them  be 
taken   away,   the   others   may   stand    entire 
and     by     themselves;      but     a     qualifying 
paragraph,  as,  for  example,  an  exception  or 
a   proviso,    if   separated    from    the    general 
assertion  or  statement   to  which  it  belongs, 
does  not  contain  an  entire  point  or  propo- 
sition.* 

SEC.  II.     FILLING   BLANKS. 

84.  Blanks  of  Times  and  Numbers  f 
How    Filled. — It   often    happens,    that    a 
proposition   is  introduced   with  blanks  pur- 
posely  left  by  the  mover  to  be- filled  by  the 
assembly,  either  with  times  and  numbers,  or 
with  provisions  analogous  to  those   of    the 
proposition  itself.     In  the  latter  case,  blanks 
are  filled  in  the  same  way,  that  other  amend- 
ments by  the    insertion  of  words  are  made. 
In   the  former,  proposition  to  fill  blanks  are 
not  considered  as  amendments  to  the  ques- 
tion, but  as  original  motions,  to  be  made  and 
decided  before  the  principal  question. 

*  The  motion  to  strike  out  and  insert  is  regarded  now  in 
practice  in  the  United  States  as  indivisible.— J.  J.  I. 


ORDER   OF   FILLING   BLANKS.  57 

85.  Motions  to   Fill    Blanks  :     How 
Acted   Upon. — When  a  blank  is  left  to  be 
filled  with   a  time  or  number,  motions  may 
be  made  for  that  purpose,  and  the  question 
taken  on   each  by  itself,  and  before  another 
is  made;  or  several  motions  may  be  made  and 
pending  before  any  of  them  are  put  to  the 
question.     This    last   mode   of   proceeding, 
which  is  the  most  usual  as  well  as  convenient, 
requires  that  the  several  propositions  should 
be  arranged,  and  the  question  taken  on  them, 
in  such  order  as  will  the  soonest  and  with  the 
most  certainty  ena'ble  the  assembly  to  come 
to  an  agreement. 

86.  Order  of  Filling  Blanks :  Object 
Sought. — In  determining  upon  the  order  to 
be  adopted,  the  object  is  not  to  begin  at  that 
extreme,  which  and  more  being  within  every 
man's   wish,  no  one  can  vote  against  it,  and, 
yet,  if  it  should  be  carried  in  the  affirmative, 
every  question  for  more  would  be  precluded: 
but,  at  that  extreme,  which  will  be  likely  to 
unite   the  fewest,  and    then    to   advance  or 
recede,  until  a  number  or  time  is  reached, 
which  will  unite  a  majority. 

87.  Order  of  Filling  Blanks  :  Reasons 
for  the   Method  that    is    Followed.— 
Hence,  when    several  different   propositions 


58  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

are  made  for  filling  blanks  with  a  time  or 
number,  the  rule  is,  that  if  the  larger  com* 
prehends  the  lesser,  as  in  a  question  to  what 
day  a  postponement  shall  take  place, — the 
number  of  which  a  committee  shall  consist, 
— the  amount  of  a  fine  to  be  imposed, — the 
term  of  an  imprisonment, — the  term  of  irre- 
deemability  of  a  loan, — or  the  terminus  in 
quern  in  any  other  case,  the  question  must 
begin  a  maxima,  and  be  first  taken  upon  the 
greatest  or  farthest,  and  so  on  to  the  least  or 
nearest,  until  the  assembly  comes  to  a  vote: 
But,  if  the  lesser  includes  the  greater,  as  in 
questions  on  the  limitation  of  the  rate  of 
interest, — on  the  amount  of  a  tax, — on  what 
day  the  session  of  a  legislative  assembly  shall 
be  closed,  by  adjournment, — on  what  day  the 
next  session  shall  commence, — or  the  ter- 
minus  a  quo  in  any  other  case,  the  question 
must  begin  a  minima,  and  be  first  taken  on 
the  least  or  nearest,  and  so  on  to  the  greatest 
or  most  remote,  until  the  assembly  comes  to 
a  vote.* 

*  The  above  is  the  rule  as  laid  down  by  Mr.  Jefferson  (§  33), 
and  holds  where  it  is  not  superseded  by  a  special  rule,  which 
is  generally  the  case  in  our  legislative  assemblies;  as,  for 
example,  in  the  senate  of  the  United  States,  the  rule  is,  that 
in  filling  blanks,  the  largest  sum  and  longest  time  shall  be 
first  put.  In  the  house  of  commons,  in  England,  the  rule 
established  by  usage  is,  that  the  smallest  sum  and  the  longest 
time  shall  be  first  put. 


TRANSPOSITION.  5£ 

SEC.   III.      ADDITION— SEPARA- 
TION —TRANSPOSITION. 

88.  Condensation  of  Matters :  How 
Reached. — When  the  matters  contained  in 
two  separate  propositions  might  be  better  put! 
into  one,  the  mode  of  proceeding  is,  to  reject 
one  of   them,  and  then  to  incorporate  the 
substance   of  it   with   the  other  by  way  of 
amendment.     A  better  mode,  however,  if  the 
business  of  the  assembly  will  admit  of  its 
being  adopted,  is  to  refer  both  propositions 
to  a  committee,  with   instructions  to  incor- 
porate them  together  in  one. 

89.  Distribution    of    Matters :    How 
Reached. — So,  on  the  other   hand,  if  the 
matter   of   one  proposition  would   be  more 
properly  distributed  into  two,  any  part  of  it 
may   be   struck  out  by  way  of  amendment,, 
and  put  into  the  form  of  a  new  and  distinct 
proposition.     But  in  this,  as  in  the  former 
case,  a   better   mode  would    generally  be  to 
refer  the  subject  to  a  committee. 

90.  Transposition :  How  Secured. — 
In  like  manner,  if  a  paragraph  or  section  re- 
quires te  be  transposed,  a  question  must  be 
put  on  striking  it  out  where  it  stands,  and 
another  for  inserting  it  in  the  place  desired. 


60  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

91.  Numbering  Sections  and  Para- 
graphs :  Clerical  Only.—    The  uumbers 
prefixed    to  the  several  sections,  paragraphs, 
or  resolutions,  which  constitute  a  proposition, 
are  merely  marginal  indications,  and  no  part 
of  the  text  of  the  proposition  itself;  and,  if 
necessary,  they  may  be  altered  or  regulated 
by  the  clerk,  without  any  vote  or  order  of  the 
assembly. 

SEC.  IV.    MODIFICATION   OR 

AMENDMENT    BY   THE 

MOVER. 

92.  Amendment  of  Motion :  May  be 
Made  at  Any  Time  by  General  Con- 
sent.— The  mover  of  a  proposition  is  some- 
times allowed  to  modify  it,  after  it  has  been 
stated   as  a  question  by  the  presiding  officer; 
but,  as   this  is  equivalent  to  a  withdrawal  of 
the  motion,  in  order  to  substitute  another  in 
its   place;  and,  since,  as   has   already    been 
seen,  a  motion  regularly  made;  seconded,  and 
proposed,  cannot  be  withdravfawithout  leave; 
it  is  clear,  that  the  practice  alluded  to  rests 
only   upon   general   consent;    and,    that,   if 
objected  to,  the  mover  of  a  proposition  must 
obtain     the     permission    of    the    assembly, 
by  a  motion  and   question  for  the  purpose, 


AMENDMENTS.  61 

in  orcier  to  enable  him  to  modify  his  propo- 
sition. 

93.  Amendment  to  Motion :    Mover 
of  Original  Question  May  Accept*  by 
General    Consent. — So,    too,    when     an 
amendment  has  been  regularly  moved  and 
seconded,  it  is  sometimes  the  practice  for  the 
mover  of  the  proposition  to  which  it  relates 
to   signify    his   consent   to   it,  and   for  the 
amendment  to  be  thereupon  made,  without 
any  question    being  taken  upon  it  by  the  as- 
sembly.    As    this   proceeding,    however,    is 
essentially  the  same  with   that  described  in 
the  preceding  paragraph,  it,  of  course,  rests 
upon  the  same  foundation,  and  is  subject  to 
the  same  rule.     [T  322.] 

SEC.  V.     GENERAL   RULES   RE- 
LATING TO    AMENDMENTS. 

94.  Amendments :  Three  Forms  of. 

— All  amendments,  of  which  a  proposition 
is  susceptible,  so  far  as  form  is  concerned, 
may  be  effected  in  one  of  three  ways,  namely, 
either  by  inserting  or  adding  certain  words; 
or  by  striking  out  certain  words;  or  by 
striking  out  certain  words,  and  inserting  or 
adding  others.  These  several  forms  of 
amendment  are  subject  to  certain  general 


62  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

rules,  which,  being  equally  applicable  to 
them  all,  require  to  be  stated  beforehand. 

95.  Order  of  Amendments:  Numer- 
ical Sequence  Should  be  Followed.— 
First  rule.  When  a  proposition  consists  of 
several  sections,  paragraphs,  or  resolutions, 
the  natural  order  of  considering  and  amend- 
ing it  is  to  begin  at  the  beginning,  and  to 
proceed  through  it  in  course  by  paragraphs; 
and  when  a  latter  part  has  been  amended,  it 
is  not  in  order  to  recur  back,  and  make  any 
alteration  or  amendment  of  a  former  part, 

96*  Amendment  :  Limitation  of. — 
Second  Rule.  Every  amendment,  which  can 
be  proposed,  whether  by  striking  out,  or 
inserting,  or  striking  out  and  inserting,  is 
itself  susceptible  of  amendment;  but  there 
can  be  no  amendment  of  an  amendment  to 
an  amendment;  this  would  be  such  a  piling 
of  questions  one  upon  another,  as  would  lead 
to  great  embarrassment;  and  as  the  line  must 
be  drawn  somewhere,  it  has  been  fixed  by 
usage  after  the  amendment  to  the  amend- 
ment. The  object,  which  is  proposed  to  be 
effected  by  such  a  proceeding,  must  be  sought 
by  rejecting  the  amendment  to  the  amend- 
ment, in  the  form  in  which  it  is  proposed, 
and  then  moving  it  again  ir>  the  form  in 


ILLUSTKATIOX.  63 

which  it  is  wished  to  be  amended,  in  which 
it  is  only  an  amendment  to  an  amendment; 
and  in  order  to  accomplish  this,  he  who 
desires  to  amend  an  amendment  should  give 
notice,  that,  if  rejected,  in  the  form  in 
which  it  is  presented,  he  shall  move  it  again 
in  the  form  in  which  he  desires  to  have  it 
adopted. 

97.  Illustration  : — Thus,  if  a  proposition 
consist  of  A  B,  and  it  is  proposed  to  amend 
by  inserting  0  D,  it  may  be  moved  to  amend 
the  amendment   by   inserting  E  F;  but   it 
cannot  be  moved  to  amend  this  amendment, 
as,  for  example,  by  inserting  Gr.     The  only 
mode,  by  which   this  can  be  reached,  is  to 
reject  the  amendment  in  the  form  in  which 
it   is  presented,  namely,  to  insert  E  F,  and 
to  move  it  in  the  form  in  which  it  is  desired 
to  be  amended,  namely,  to  insert  E  G  F. 

98.  Proposition  :  Finally  Agreed  to 
Cannot  be  Afterward  Amended.— Third 
Rule.  Whatever  is  agreed  to  by  the  assembly, 
on  a  vote,  either  adopting  or  rejecting  a  pro- 
posed    amendment,     cannot    be    afterward 
altered  or  amended. 

99.  Illustration  : — Thus,  if  a  proposition 
consist  of  A  B,  and  it  is  moved  to  insert  C; 
if  the  amendment  prevail,  C  cannot  be  after- 


64  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

ward  amended,  because  it  has  been  agreed 
to  in  that  form;  and,  so,  if  it  is  moved  to 
strike  out  B,  and  the  amendment  is  rejected, 
B  cannot  afterward  be  amended,  because  a 
vote  against  striking  it  out  is  equivalent  to  a 
vote  agreeing  to  it  as  it  stands. 

100.  Proposition  :  Disagreed  to  Can- 
not be   Moved    Again.  —  Fourth    Rule. 
Whatever  is  disagreed   to  by  the  assembly, 
on    a    vote,    cannot    be    afterward    moved 
again.     This   rule   is  the   converse    of    the 
preceding,    and    may   be   illustrated    in  the 
same  manner. 

101.  Illustration. — Thus,  if  it  is  moved 
to  amend  A  B  by  inserting  C,  and  the  amend- 
ment is  rejected,  0  cannot  be  moved  again; 
or,  if  it  is   moved  to  amend  A  B  by  striking 
out  B,  and  the  amendment  prevails,  B  can- 
not be  restored,  because,  in  the  first  case,  C, 
and,  in  the  other,  B,  have  been  disagreed  to 
by  a  vote. 

102.  Inconsistency :  Ground  for  Re- 
jection, But  Not    for  Suppression    on 
Point   of  Order.— Fifth  Rule.  The  incon- 
sistency  or   incompatibility   of   a   proposed 
amendment  with  one  which  has  already  been 
adopted,  is  a  fit  ground  for  its  rejection  by 
the  assembly,  but  not  for  the  suppression  of 


ILLUSTRATION.  65 

it  by  the  presiding  officer,  as  against  order; 
for,  if  questions  of  this  nature  were  allowed 
to  be  brought  within  the  jurisdiction  of 
the  presiding  officer,  as  matters  of  order, 
he  might  usurp  a  negative  on  important 
modifications,  and  suppress  or  embarrass 
instead  of  subserving  the  will  of  the  as- 
sembly. 

SEC.   VI.    AMENDMENTS  BY 
STRIKING  OUT. 

103.  Rejected  Amendment  to  Strike 
Out :  Limitations  of, — If  an  amendment 
is  proposed  by  striking  out  a  particular  para- 
graph or  certain  words,  and. the  amendment 
is  rejected,  it  cannot  be  again  moved  to  strike 
out  the  same  words  or  a  part  of  them;  but 
it    may   be    moved    to   strike  out  the  same 
words   with  others,  or  to  strike  out  a  part  of 
the  same   words  with   others,   provided  the 
coherence  to  be  struck  out  be  so  substantial, 
as  to  make  these,  in  fact,  different  proposi- 
tions from  the  former. 

104.  Illustration. — Thus,  if    a   proposi- 
tion consist  of  A  B  C  D,  and  it  is  moved  to 
strike  out  B  C;  if  this  amend  mentis  rejected, 
it   cannot   be   moved  again;  but  it  may  be 
moved  to  strike  out  A  B,  or  A  B  C,  or  B  G 
D  or  CD. 


66  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

105.  Amendment     to      Strike     Out 
Agreed  to  :  How  Limited. — If  an  amend- 
ment by  striking  out  is  agreed  to,  it  cannot 
be  afterward  moved  to  insert  the  same  words 
struck  out  or  a  part  of  them;  but  it  may  be 
moved  to  insert  the  same  words  with  others, 
or  a  part  of  the  same  words  with  others,  pro- 
vided  the   coherence   to   be   inserted    make 
these    propositions    substantially    different 
from  the  first. 

106.  Illustration. — Thus,  if   the    propo- 
sition A  B  G  D  is  amended  by  striking  out 
B  C,  it   cannot   be    moved   to   insert   B    G 
again;  but   it  may  be  moved  to  insert  B  0 
with   other   words,  or   B   with   others,  or  C 
with  others. 

107.  Three  Amendments  to  Motion  : 
To  Amend  by  Striking  out,  Described. 
— When  it  is  proposed  to  amend  by  striking 
out  a  particular  paragraph,  it  may  be  moved 
to   amend   this   amendment,    in   three   dif- 
ferent ways,  namely,  either  by  striking  out  a 
part  only  of   the  paragraph,  or  by  inserting 
or  adding  words,  or  by  striking  out  and  in- 
serting. 

108.  Illustration.— Thus,  if  it  is  moved 
to  amend  the  proposition  A  B  G  D,  by  strik- 
ing out  B  G,  it  may  be  moved  to  amend  this 


MOTIONS   TO   AMEKD.  67 

amendment  by  striking  out  B  only  or  C  only, 
or  by  inserting  E,  or  by  striking  out  B  or  0, 
and  inserting  E. 

109.  If  Motion  to  Strike  Out  is  Pend- 
ing: Motion  to  Amend  Paragraph  to 
be  Retained  Must  be  Made  When. — 
In  the  case  of  a  proposed  amendment  by 
striking  out,  the  effect  of  voting  upon  it, 
whether  it  be  decided  in  the  affirmative  or 
negative,  according  to  the  third  and  fourth 
rules  above  mentioned,  renders  it  necessary 
for  those  who  desire  retain  the  paragraph 
to  amend  it,  if  any  amendment  is  necessary, 
before  the  vote  is  taken  on  striking  out;  as, 
if  struck  out,  it  cannot  be  restored,  and,  if 
retained,  it  cannot  be  amended. 

no.  Motions  to  Amend  :  Precedence 
of. — As  an  amendment  must  necessarily  be 
put  to  the  question  before  the  principal 
motion;  so  the  question  must  be  put  on  an 
amendment  to  an  amendment  before  it  is  put 
on  the  amendment  but,  as  this  is  the  ex- 
treme limit  to  which  motions  may  be  put 
upon  one  another,  there  can  be  no  precedence 
of  one  over  another  among  amendments  to 
amendments;  and,  consequently,  they  can 
only  be  moved,  one  at  a  time,  or,  at  all  events, 
must  be  put  to  the  question  in  the  order  in 
which  they  are  movsd. 


68  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

in.  Motion  to  Strike  Out :  Form  of, 
and  Reason  thereof. — When  a  motion  for 
striking  out  words  is  put  to  the  question,  the 
parliamentary  form  always  is,  whether  the 
words  shall  stand  as  part  of  the  principal 
motion,  and  not  whether  they  shall  be  struck 
out.  The  reason  for  this  form  of  stating  the 
question  probably  is,  that  the  question  may 
be  taken  in  the  same  manner  on  a  part  as  on 
the  whole  of  the  principal  motion;  which 
would  not  be  the  case,  if  the  question  was 
stated  on  striking  out;  inasmuch  as  the  ques- 
tion on  the  principal  motion,  when  it  comes 
to  be  stated,  will  be  on  agreeing  to  it,  and 
not  on  striking  out  or  rejecting  it.  Besides, 
as  an  equal  division  of  the  assembly  would 
produce  a  different  decision  of  the  question, 
according  to  the  manner  of  stating  it,  it 
might  happen,  if  the  question  on  the  amend- 
ment was  stated  on  striking  out,  that  the  same 
question  would  be  decided  both  affirmatively 
and  negatively  by  the  same  vote.* 

112.  Motion  to  Amend  by  Striking- 
Out  :  Statement  of. — On  a  motion  to 
amend  by  striking  out  certain  words,  the 

*  The  common,  if  not  the  only,  mode  of  stating  the  question, 
in  the  legislative  assemblies  of  this  country,  is  on  striking 
out. 


ILLUSTRATION.  69 

manner  of  stating  the  question  is,  first  to 
read  the  passage  proposed  to  be  amended,  as 
it  stands;  then  the  words  proposed  to  be 
struck  out;  and,  lastly,  the  whole  passage  as 
it  will  stand  if  the  amendment  is  adopted. 
[IF  323.] 

SEC.  VII.  AMENDMENTS  BY 
INSERTING. 

113.  Rejected  Amendment  to  Insert: 
Same  Proposition  Cannot  be  Moved 
Again. — If  an  amendment  is  proposed  by 
inserting  or  adding  a  paragraph  or  words, 
and  the  amendment  is  rejected,  it  cannot  be 
moved  again  to  insert  the  same  words  or  a 
part  of  them;  but  it  may  be  moved  to  insert 
the   same   words   with  others,  or  a  part  of 
the  same  words   with  others,   provided  the  ' 
coherence  really  make  them  different  propo- 
sitions. 

114.  Illustration. — Thus,  if  it  is  moved 
to  amend  the  proposition  A  B  by  inserting 
C  D,  and  the  amendment  is  rejected,  C  D 
cannot  be  again  moved;  but  it  may  be  moved 
to  insert  C  E,  or  D  E,  or  ODE. 

115.  Motion    to   Insert    Agreed     to 
Prevents  Motion  to  Strike  Out  Same 
Proposition. — If  it   is  proposed  to  amend 


70  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

by  inserting  a  paragraph,  and  the  amend- 
ment prevails,  it  cannot  be  afterward  moved 
to  strike  out  the  same  words  or  a  part  of 
them;  but  it  may  be  moved  to  strike  out  the 
same  words  with  others,*  or  a  part  of  the 
same  words  with  others,  provided  the  coher- 
ence be  such  as  to  make  these  propositions 
really  different  from  the  first. 

116.  Illustration. — Thus,  if  in   the   ex- 
ample  above  supposed,  the  amendment  pre- 
vails, and  C  D  is  inserted,  it  cannct  be  after- 
ward moved  to  strike  out  C  D,  but  it  may  be 
moved  to  strike  out  A  C  or  A  0  D,  or  D  B, 
or  0  D  B. 

117.  Motion  to  Insert :  Three  Ways 
to  Amend. — When  it  is  proposed  to  amend 
by  inserting  a  paragraph,  this  amendment 
may   be  amended  in  three  different   ways, 
namely,  either  by  striking  out  a  part  of  the 
paragraph;  or  by  inserting  something  into 
it;  or  by  striking  out  and  inserting. 

118.  Illustration.— Thus,  if    it  is    pro< 
posed  to  amend  A  B  by  inserting  C  D,  tins 
amendment  maybe  amended  either  by  strik- 
ing out  C  or  D.  or  inserting  E,  or  by  striking 
out  C  or  D  and  inserting  E. 

*  This  is  the  common  case  of  striking  out  a  paragraph,  after 
having  amended  it  by  inserting  words. 


AMENDMENTS   TO   INSERT.  71 

119.  When  Motion  to    Insert  Must 
be   Amended. — When  it  is    proposed    to 
amend    by  inserting  a  paragraph,  those  who 
are  in  favor  of  the  amendment  should  amend 
it,  if  necessary,  before  the  question  is  taken; 
because  if  it  is  rejected,  it  cannot  be  moved 
again,    and,    if     received,    it     cannot     be 
amended. 

120.  Amendments     to    Insert :     No 
Priority  in. — There  is  no  precedence  of  one 
over  another  in  amendments  to  amendments 
by  inserting,  any  more  than  in  amendments 
to  amendments  by  striking  out. 

121.  Question:  How  Stated.— On    a 
motion  to  amend  by  inserting  a  paragraph, 
the  manner  of   stating  the  question  is,  first, 
to  read   the   passage  to   be   amended,  as   it 
stands;  then  the  words  proposed  to   be  in- 
serted; and,  lastly,  the  whole  passage  as  it 
will  stand  if  the  amendment  prevails. 

SEC.  VIII.     AMENDMENTS  BY 
STRIKING  OUT  AND  IN- 
SERTING. 

122.  Motion  to  Strike  Out  and   In- 
sert :    Question     Divisible.— The    third 
form  of  amending  a  proposition,  namely,  by 
striking   out   certain    words    and    inserting 


72  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

others  in  their  place,  is,  in  fact,  a  combination 
of  the  other  two  forms;  and  may  accordingly 
be  divided  into  those  two  forms,  either  by  a 
vote  of  the  assembly,  or  on  the  demand  of  a 
member,  under  a  special  rule  to  that  effect.* 
[1"  323.] 

123.  Proceedings  in  Case  of  Division. 
— If  the  motion  is  divided,  the  question  is  first 
to  be  taken  on  striking  out;  and  if  that  is 
decided  in  the  affirmative,  then,  on  inserting; 
but  if  the  former  is  decided  in  the  negative, 
the  latter  falls,  of  course.     On  a  division,  the 
proceedings  are  the  same,  in  reference  to  each 
branch  of  the  question,  beginning  with  the 
striking   out,  as   if   each   branch    had   been 
moved  by  itself. 

124.  Proceedings    when    Motion   to 
Strike  Out  and  Insert  is  Not  Divided. — 
If  the  motion  to  strike  out  and  insert  is  put 
to  the  question  undivided,  and  is  decided  in 
the   negative,  the    same   motion   cannot   be 
made  again;  but,  it  may  be  moved  to  strike 


*  Mr.  Jefferson  (§  xxxv)  says,  "  the  question,  if  desired,  is 
then  to  be  divided,'1  etc. ;  but,  as  he  makes  no  exception  of  a 
motion  to  strike  out  and  insert,  when  treating  of  the  subject 
of  division,  and  does  not  here  state  it  as  an  exception,  he  un- 
loubtedly  supposes  the  division  in  this  case  to  be  made  in  the 
•egular  and  usual  manner. 

Not  divisible  in  practice  in  United  States.— J.  J.  I. 


MOTION   TO    AMEND.  73 

out  the  same  words,  and,  1,  insert  nothing; 
2,  insert  other  words;  3,  insert  the  same 
words  with  others;  4,  insert  a  part  of  the 
same  words  with  others;  5,  strike  out  the 
same  words  with  others,  and  insert  the  same; 
6,  strike  out  a  part  of  the  same  words  with 
others,  and  insert  the  same;  7,  strike  out 
other  words  and  insert  the  same;  and,  8, 
insert  the  same  words  without  striking  out 
anything. 

125.  If  Motion  to  Strike  Out  and  In- 
sert Decided  in  Affirmative  :  What.— - 
If   the   motion   to   strike   out  and  insert  is 
decided  in  the  affirmative,  it  cannot  be  then 
moved   to  insert  the  words  struck  out  or  a 
part  of  them,  or  to  strike  out  the  words  in- 
serted, or   a-  part  of   them;  but,  it  may  be 
moved,  1,  to   insert   the   same   words   with 
others;  2,  to  insert  a  part  of  the  same  words 
with  others;  3,  to  strike  out  the  same  words 
with  others;  or,  4,  to  strike  out  a  part  of  the 
same  words  with  others. 

126.  Motion  to  Amend  by  Striking 
Out  and  Inserting  May  be  Amended 
in  Three  Ways. — When  it  is  proposed  to 
amend  by  striking  out   and  inserting,  this 
amendment  may  be  amended  in  three  dif- 
ferent ways  in  the  paragraph  proposed  to  be 


74  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

struck  out,  and  also  in  the  paragraph  pro- 
prosed  to  be  inserted,  namely,  by  striking 
out,  or  inserting,  or  striking  out  and  insert- 
ing. And  those  who  are  in  favor  of  either 
paragraph  must  amend  it,  before  the  ques- 
tion is  taken,  for  the  reasons  already  stated, 
namely,  that,  if  decided  in  the  affirmative, 
the  part  struck  out  cannot  be  restored,  nor 
can  the  part  inserted  be  amended;  and,  if 
decided  in  the  negative,  the  part  proposed  to 
be  struck  out  cannot  be  amended,  nor  can 
the  paragraph  proposed  to  be  inserted  be 
moved  again. 

127.  Motion   to   Amend  by  Striking* 
Out  and  Inserting  :  Amended  How.— 
On  a  motion  to  amend,  by  striking  out  cer- 
tain  words  and  inserting  others,  the  manner 
of   stating  the  question  is  first  to  read  the 
whole   passage   to  be  amended,  as  it  stands; 
then  the  words  proposed  to  be  struck  out; 
next  those   to  be  inserted;  and,  lastly,  the 
whole  passage  as  it  will  stand  when  amended. 

SEC.      IX.      AMENDMENTS 

CHANGING  THE  NATURE 

OF  A  QUESTION. 

128.  Motion  to  Amend  May  be  Made 
by  Those  Who  Do  Not  Favor  Original 


ILLUSTRATION".  75 

Proposition. — The  term  amendment  is  in 
strictness  applicable  only  to  those  changes 
of  a  proposition  by  which  it  is  improved, 
that  is,  rendered  more  effectual  for  the  pur- 
pose which  it  has  in  view,  or  made  to  express 
more  clearly  and  definitely  the  sense  which 
it  is  intended  to  express.  Hence  it  seems 
proper,  that  those  only  should  undertake  to 
amend  a  proposition,  who  are  friendly  to  it; 
but  this  is  by  no  means  the  rule;  when  a 
proposition  is  regularly  moved  and  seconded, 
it  is  in  the  possession  of  the  assembly,  and 
cannot  be  withdrawn  but  by  its  leave;  it  has 
then  become  the  basis  of  the  future  proceed- 
ings of  the  assembly,  and  may  be  put  into 
any  shape,  and  turned  to  any  purpose,  that 
the  assembly  may  think  proper. 

129.  Proposition    May    be    Entirely 
Changed  by  Amendment.— It  is  conse- 
quently allowable   to  amend  a  proposition  in 
such  a  manner  as  entirely  to  alter  its  nature, 
and  to  make  it  bear  a  sense  different  from 
what  it  was  originally  intended  to  bear;  so 
that   the  friends  of  it,  as  it  was  first  intro- 
duced, may   themselves   be   forced   to   vote 
against  it,  in  its  amended  form. 

130.  Illustration. — This   mode  of    pro- 
ceeding is  sometimes  adopted  for  the  pur- 


76  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

pose  of  defeating  a  proposition,  by  compel- 
ling its  original  friends  to  unite  with  those 
who  are  opposed  to  it,  in  voting  for  its 
rejection.  Thus,  in  the  British  house  oi 
commons,  Jan.  29,  1765,  a  resolution  being 
moved,  "  That  a  general  warrant  for  appre- 
hending the  authors,  printers,  or  publishers 
of  a  libel,  together  with  their  papers,  is  not 
warranted  by  law,  and  is  an  high  violation  of 
the  liberty  of  the  subject:" — it  was  moved  to 
amend  this  motion  by  prefixing  the  following 
paragraph,  namely:  "  That  in  the  particular 
case  of  libels,  it  is  proper  and  necessary  to 
fix,  by  a  vote  of  this  house  only,  what  ought 
to  be  deemed  the  law  in  respect  of  general 
warrants;  and,  for  that  purpose,  at  the  time 
when  the  determination  of  the  legality  of 
such  warrants,  in  the  instance  of  a  most 
seditious  and  treasonable  libel,  is  actually 
depending  before  the  courts  of  law,  for  this 
house  to  declare  " — that  a  general  warrant 
for  apprehending  the  authors,  printers,  or 
publishers  of  a  libel,  together  with  their 
papers,  is  not  warranted  by  law,  and  is  an 
high  violation  of  the  liberty  of  the  subject. 
The  amendment  was  adopted,  after  a  long 
debate,  and  then  the  resolution  as  amended 


ILLUSTRATION.  77 

was  immediately   rejected    without  a  divi- 
sion.* 

131.  Illustration.— -But  sometimes  the 
nature  of  a  proposition  is  changed  by  means 
of  amendments,  with  a  view  to  its  adop- 
tion in  a  sense  the  very  opposite  of  what 
it  was  originally  intended  to  bear.  The 
following  is  a  striking  example  of  this 
mode  of  proceeding.  In  the  house  of  com- 
mons, April  10,  1744,  a  resolution  was  moved, 
declaring,  "  That  the  issuing  and  paying 
to  the  Duke  of  Aremberg  the  sum  of  forty 
thousand  pounds  sterling  to  put  the  Austrian 
troops  in  motion  in  the  year  1742,  was  a 
dangerous  misapplication  of  public  money, 
and  destructive  of  the  rights  of  parliament/' 
The  object  of  this  resolution  was  to  censure 
the  conduct  of  the  ministers;  and  the  friends 
of  the  ministry,  being  in  a  majority,  might 


*  This  mode  of  defeating  a  measure,  however,  is  not  always 
successful.  In  1780,  Mr.  Dunning  having  made  a  motion,  in 
the  house  of  commons,  "  that,  in  the  opinion  of  this  house, 
the  influence  of  the  crown  has  increased,  is  increasing,  aud 
ought  to  be  diminished,1'  Dundas,  lord-advocate  of  Scotland, 
in  order  to  defeat  the  motion,  proposed  to  amend,  by  insert- 
Ing,  after  the  words,  in  the  opinion  of  this  house,  the  words, 
it  is  now  necessary  to  declare  that,  etc.  But  this  amend- 
ment, instead  of  intimidating  the  friends  of  the  original  motion 
was  at  once  adopted  by  them,  and  the  resolution  passed  as 
amended. 


78  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

have  voted  directly  upon  the  motion  and 
rejected  it.  But  they  preferred  to  turn  it 
into  a  resolution  approving  of  the  conduct  of 
ministers  on  the  occasion  referred  to;  and  it 
was  accordingly  moved  to  amend,  by  leaving 
out  the  words  "  a  dangerous  misapplication/' 
etc.,  to  the  end  of  the  motion,  and  inserting 
instead  thereof  the  words,  "  necessary  for 
putting  the  said  troops  in  motion,  and  of 
great  consequence  to  the  common  cause." 
The  amendment  being  adopted,  it  was 
resolved  (reversing  the  original  proposition) 
"  That  the  issuing  and  paying  to  the  Duke 
of  Aremberg  the  sum  of  forty  thousand 
pounds,  to  put  the  Austrian  troops  in  motion, 
in  the  year  1742,  was  necessary  for  putting 
the  said  troops  in  motion,  and  of  great  con- 
sequence to  the  common  cause/' 

132.  Proposition  May  be  Defeated 
by  Amendments  :  How. — It  i  sa  mode  of 
defeating  a  proposition,  somewhat  similar  to 
that  above  mentioned,  to  carry  out  or  extend 
the  principle  of  it,  by  means  of  amendments, 
so  as  to  show  the  inconvenience,  absurdity, 
or  danger  of  its  adoption,  with  such  evident 
clearness,  that  it  becomes  impossible  for  the 
assembly  to  agree  to  it.  Thus,  a  motion 
having  been  made  in  the  house  of  commons, 


INCONGUOUS   MATTERS.  79 

"  for  copies  of  all  the  letters  written  by  the 
lords  of  the  admiralty  to  a  certain  officer  in 
the  navy,"  it  was  moved  to  amend  the  motion 
by  adding  these  words; — "  which  letters  may 
contain  orders,  or  be  relative  to  orders,  not 
executed,  and  still  subsisting."  This  amend- 
ment being  adopted,  the  motion  as  amended 
was  unanimously  rejected. 

133.  Incongruous  Matters  May  be 
Added  by  Amendment. — It  Will  be  seen, 
from  the  foregoing  examples,  that  as  the 
mover  of  a  proposition  is  under  no  restriction 
as  to  embracing  incongruous  matters  under 
the  same  motion;  so,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
assembly  may  engraft  upon  a  motion,  by  way 
of  amendment,  matter  which  is  not  only  in- 
congruous with,  but  entirely  opposed  to,  the 
motion  as  originally  introduced;  and,  in 
legislative  assemblies,  it  is  not  unusual  to 
amend  a  bill  by  striking  out  all  after  the  en- 
acting clause,  and  inserting  an  entirely  new 
bill;  or  to  amend  a  resolution  by  striking  out 
all  after  the  words  "  Eesolved  that,"  and 
inserting  a  proposition  of  a  wholly  different 
tenor,  [t  324.] 


60  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE* 


CHAPTER  X. 

OF   THE   ORDER  AND  SUCCES- 
SION OF  QUESTIONS. 

134.  Exceptions     to     Rule :     That 
Question  Pending  Must  be   Disposed 
of  Before  Another  Can  be  Taken  Up. 
— It  is  a  general  rule,  that,  when  a  propo- 
sition is  regularly   before  a  deliberative  as- 
sembly, for  its  consideration,  no  other  pro- 
position or  motion  can  regularly  be  made  or 
arise,  so  as  to  take  the  place  of  the  former, 
and  be  first  acted  upon,  unless  it  be  either, 
Jirsf,  a  privileged  question;  secondly,  a  sub- 
sidiary  question;   or,  thirdly,  an   incidental 
question  or  motion. 

135.  Three  Excepted  Motions  Take 
the  Place  of  Main  Question.— All  these 
motions  take  the  place  of  the  principal  mo- 
tion, or  main  question,  as  it  is  usually  called, 
and   are  to  be  first  put  to  the  question;  and, 
among   themselves,    also,    there    are    some, 
which,  in  like  manner,  take  the  place  of  all 


PRIVILEGED   QUESTIONS.  81 

the  others.  Some  of  these  questions  merely 
supersede  the  principal  question,  until  they 
have  been  decided;  and,  when  decided, 
whether  affirmatively  or  negatively,  leave 
that  question  as  before.  Others  of  them 
also  supersede  the  principal  question,  until 
they  are  decided;  and,  when  decided  one 
way  dispose  of  the  principal  question; 
but,  if  decided  the  other  way,  leave  it  as 
before. 

SEC.  I.     PRIVILEGED   QUES- 
TIONS. 

136.  Privileged  Questions:  What 
Are. — There  are  certain  motions  or  ques- 
tions, which  on  account  of  the  superior  im- 
portance attributed  to  them,  either  in  con- 
sequence of  a  vote  of  the  assembly,  or  in 
themselves  considered,  or  of  the  necessity  of 
the  proceedings  to  which  they  lead,  are 
entitled  to  take  the  place  of  any  other 
subject  or  proposition,  which  may  then  be 
under  consideration,  and  to  be  first  acted 
upon  and  decided  by  the  assembly.  These 
are  called  privileged  questions,  because  they 
are  entitled  to  precedence  over  other  ques- 
tions, though  they  are  of  different  degrees 
among  themselves.  Questions  of  this  nature 


$2  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

-are  of  three  kinds,  namely,  first,  motions 
to  adjourn;  secondly,  motions  or  questions 
relating  to  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the 
assembly,  or  of  its  members  individually; 
and,  thirdly,  motions  for  the  orders  of  the 
day. 

ADJOURNMENT. 

137.  Motion  to  Adjourn  Has  Priority: 
\Vhy. — A  motion  to  adjourn  takes  the  place 
of  all  other  questions  whatsoever;*  for,  other- 
wise, the  assembly  might  be  kept  sitting 
-against  its  will,  and  for  an  indefinite  time; 
but,  in  order  to  entitle  this  motion  to  pre- 
cedence, it  must  be  simple  to  "  adjourn," 
without  the  addition  of  any  particular  day 
or  time.  And,  as  the  object  of  this  motion, 
when  made  in  the  midst  of  some  other  pro- 

*  It  is  commonly  said,  that  a  motion  to  adjourn  is  always 
in  order,  but  this  is  not  precisely  true.  The  question  of  ad- 
journment may,  indeed,  be  moved  repeatedly  on  the  same 
day ;  yet,  in  strictness,  not  without  some  intermediate  ques- 
tion being  proposed,  after  one  motion  to  adjourn  is  disposed 
of ,  and  before  the  next  motion  is  made  for  adjourning;  as, 
for  example,  an  amendment  to  a  pending  question,  or  for  the 
reading  of  some  paper.  The  reason  of  this  is,  that,  until  some 
other  proceeding  has  intervened,  the  question  already  decided 
is  the  same  as  that  newly  moved. 

[A  motion  to  adjourn  is  not  in  order  when  a  member  is 
speaking,  nor  during  the  verification  of  a  vote,  nor  having  been 
defeated,  till  other  business  has  intervened.— J.  J.  I.] 


ADJOURNMENT   SINE   DIE.  83 

ceeding,  and  with  a  view  to  supersede  a 
question  already  proposed,  is  simple  to  break 
up  the  sitting,  it  does  not  admit  of  any 
amendment  by  the  addition  of  a  particular 
day,  or  in  any  other  manner;  though,  if  a 
motion  to  adjourn  is  made,  when  no  other 
business  is  before  the  assembly,  it  may  be 
amended  like  other  questions.  [*|[  325.] 

138.  Motion  to  Adjourn  :  How   Put 
and   Effect  of. — A   motion   to   adjourn   is 
merely,  "  that  this  assembly  do  now  adjourn;1' 
and,  if  it  is  carried  in  the  affirmative,  the 
assembly   is   adjourned   to  the  next  sitting 
day;  unless  it  has  previously  come  to  a  reso- 
lution, that,  on   rising,  it  will  adjourn  to  a 
particular  day;  in  which  case,  it  is  adjourned 
to  that  day. 

139.  Adjournment    Sine   Die   Equiv- 
alent to    Dissolution. — An   adjournment 
without  day,  that  is,  without  any  time  being 
fixed  for  reassembling,  would,  in  the  case  of 
any    other   than  a   legislative   assembly,   be 
equivalent  to  a  dissolution.* 

*It  is  quite  common,  when  the  business  of  a  deliberative  as- 
sembly has  been  brought  to  a  close,  to  adjourn  the  assembly 
without  day.  A  better  form  is  to  dissolve  it;  as  an  adjourn- 
ment without  day  if  we  regard  the  etymology  of  the  word 
adjourn,  is  a  contradiction  in  terms. 

[An  adjournment  without  day,  sine  die,  would  in  all  cases 
be  equivalent  to  dissolution.— J.  J.  I.] 


84  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

140.  Effect    of    Adjournment    Upon 
Pending  Question.— When  a  question   is 
interrupted  by  an  adjournment,  before  any 
vote  or  question  has  been  taken  upon  it,  it  is 
thereby  removed  from  before  the  assembly, 
and  will  not  stand  before  it,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  at   its   next   meeting,   but  must   be 
brought  forward  in  the  usual  way. 

QUESTIONS  OF  PRIVILEGE. 

141.  Other    Questions  of   Privilege  : 
What  Are. — The  questions,  next  in  relative 
importance,  and  which  supersede  all  others 
for  the  time  being,  except  that  of  adjourn- 
ment, are  those   which   concern   the  rights 
and  privileges  of  the  assembly,  or  of  its  in- 
dividual  members;    as,  for   example,   when 
the  proceedings  of  the  assembly  are  disturbed 
or    interrupted,    whether    by    strangers    or 
members;  or   where  a  quarrel  arises  between 
two  members;  and,  in  these  cases,  the  mat- 
ter of  privilege  supersedes  the  question  pend- 
ing at  the  time,  together  with  all  subsidiary 
and  incidental  ones,  and   must  be  first  dis- 
posed of.     When  settled,  the  question  inter- 
rupted by  it  is  to  be  resumed,  at  the  point 
where  it  was  suspended. 


ORDERS   OF   THE   DAY.  85 

ORDERS  OF  THE  DAY. 

142.  Order  of  the  Day:  What— When 
the  consideration  of  a  subject  has  been  as- 
signed  for  a  particular  day,  by  an  order  of 
the' assembly,  the  matter  so  assigned  is  called 
the  order  of  the  day  for  that  day.     If,  in  the 
course  of   business,  as  commonly  happens  in 
legislative  assemblies,  there  are  several  sub- 
jects assigned  for   the  same  day,  they  are 
called  the  orders  of  the  day. 

143.  Order  of  the  Day  Takes  Pre- 
cedence When    Reached. — A  question, 
which  is  thus  made  the  subject  of  an  order 
for  its  consideration  on  a  particular  day,  is 
thereby  made  a  privileged  question  for  that 
day;  the  order   being  a   repeal,  as  to   this 
special  case,  of  the  general   rule  as  to  busi- 
ness.    If,  therefore,  any   other  proposition 
(with  the  exception  of  the  two  preceding)  is 
moved,  or  arises,  on  the  day  assigned  for  the 
consideration  of  a  particular  subject,  a  mo- 
tion for  the  order  of  the  day  will  supersede 
the  question  first  made,  together  with   all 
subsidiary  and  incidental  questions  connected 
with  it,  and  must  be  first  put  and  decided; 
for  if  the  debate  or   consideration   of   that 
subject   were   allowed  to  proceed,  it  might 


86  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

continue  through  the  day  and   thus  defeat 
the  order. 

144.  Orders  of  the  Day :  How  Con- 
sidered.— But  this  motion,  to  entitle  it  to 
precedence,  must  be  for  the  orders  generally, 
if    there  is  more  than  one,  and  not  for  any 
particular  one;  and,  if  decided  in  the  affirm- 
ative, that   is,  that   the   assembly    will  now 
proceed  to  the  orders  of  the  day,  they  must 
then   be   read   and    gone   through    with,  in 
the  order  in  which   they  stand;  priority  of 
order   being  considered   to  give  priority  of 
right. 

145.  Motion  to  Proceed  to  Consider- 
ation of  Order  of  the  Day  :  Privileged 
When. — If  the  consideration  of  a  subject 
is  assigned  for  a  particular  hour  on  the  day 
named,  a  motion  to  proceed  to   it  is  not  a 
privileged  motion,  until   that  hour  has  ar- 
rived; but.  if  no   hour  is  fixed,  the  order  is 
for  the  entire  day  and  every  part  of  it. 

146.  Orders  of  the  Day :  Priority  of. 
— Where  there  are  several  orders  of  the  day, 
and   one  of  them  is  fixed  for  a  particular 
hour,  if  the  orders  are  taken  up  before  that 
hour,  they  are  to  be  proceeded  with  as  they 
stand,  until  that  hour,  and  then  the  subject 
assigned  for  that  hour  is  the  next  in  order; 


FAILURE   TO   DISPOSE   OF   ORDERS.        8? 

but,  if  the  orders  are  taken  up  at  that  time 
or  afterward,  that  particular  subject  must  be 
considered  as  the  first  in  order. 

147.  Pending  Question  How  Affected 
by  Proceeding  With    Orders    of   the 
Day. — If  the  motion  for  the  orders  of  the 
day  is  decided  in  the  affirmative,  the  original 
question  is  removed   from  before  the  assem- 
bly, in  the  same  manner  as  if  it  had  been  in- 
terrupted by  an    adjournment,  and  does  not 
stand   before   the   assembly,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  at   its   next   meeting,   but   must   be 
renewed  in  the  usual  way. 

148.  Negative  Decision  Upon  Motion 
to  Proceed  With  Orders  of  the  Day: 
Effect  of. — If  the  motion  is  decided  in  the 
negative,  the  vote  of  the  assembly  is  a  dis- 
charge of  the  orders,  so  far  as  they  interfere 
with  the  consideration  of  the  subject  then 
before  it,  and  entitles  that  subject  to  be  first 
disposed  of. 

149.  Failure  to  Dispose  of  Orders  of 
the   Day    on  Day  Assigned :    Conse- 
quence of. — Orders  of  the  day,  unless  pro- 
ceeded  in   and    disposed   of  on  the  day  as- 
signed, fall,  of  course,  and  must  be  renewed 
for   some  other  day.     It  may  be  provided, 
however,  by  a  special  rule,  as  in  the  legis- 


88  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

lative  assemblies  of  Massachusetts,  that  the 
orders  for  a  particular  day  shall  hold  for 
every  succeeding  day,  until  disposed  of. 

SEC.  II.     INCIDENTAL  QUES- 
TIONS. 

150.  Incidental    Questions    Defined. 

— Incidental  questions  are  such  as  arise  out 
of  other  questions,  and  are  consequently  to 
be  decided  before  the  questions  which  give 
rise  to  them.  Of  this  nature  are,  first, 
questions  of  order;  second,  motions  for 
the  reading  of  papers,  etc.;  third,  leave  to 
withdraw  a  motion;  fourth,  suspension  of 
a  rule;  and,  fifth,  amendment  of  an  amend- 
ment. 

QUESTIONS  OF  ORDER. 

151.  Questions  of  Order  :  By  Whom 
and  How  Enforced. — It  is  the  duty  of  the 
presiding  officer  of  a  deliberative  assembly, 
to  enforce  the  rules  and  orders  of  the  body 
over  which  he  presides,  in  all  its  proceedings; 
and  this  without  question,  debate,  or  delay, 
in  all  cases,  in  which  the  breach  of  order, 
or  the   departure  from   rule,    is    manifest. 
It    is    also    the    right    of    every    member, 
taking  notice   of   the   breach  of   a  rule,  to 


OF  ORDER.  89 

insist  upon   the   enforcement   of  it  in  the 
same  manner. 

152.  Question  as  to  Fact  of  Breach 
Must  First  be  Determined. — But,  though 
no  question  can  be  made,  as  to  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  rules,  when  there  is  a  breach  or 
manifest  departure  from   them,  so  long  as 
any  member  insists  upon  their  enforcement; 
yet  questions  may  and  do  frequently  arise,  as 
to  the  fact  of  their  being  a  breach  of  order, 
or  a  violation  of   the  rules  in  a  particular 
proceeding;    and   these   questions   must    be 
decided   before    a  case    can    arise   for    the 
enforcement   of    the    rules.      Questions   of 
this    kind    are    denominated    questions    of 
order. 

153.  Preliminary    Question     Super- 
sedes Other  Action  Till  Disposed  of. — 

|  AVhen  any  question  of  this  nature  arises,  in 
/  the  course  of  any  other  proceeding,  it  neces- 
sarily supersedes  the  further  consideration  of 
the  subject  out  of  which  it  arises,  until  that 
question  is  disposed  of;  then  the  original 
motion  or  proceeding  revives,  and  resumes 
its  former  position,  unless  it  has  been  itself 
disposed  of  by  the  question  of  order. 

154.  Question  of  Order :  How  Raised, 
Stated    and    Decided.     Anpeal  From 


PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

decision  of  Chair:  How  Conducted.— 

When  a  question  of  order  is  raised,  as  it  may 
be  by  any  one  member,  it  is  not  stated  from 
the  chair,  and  decided  by  the  assembly,  like 
other  questions;  but  is  decided,  in  the  first 
instance,  by  the  presiding  officer,  without 
any  previous  debate  or  discussion  by  the 
assembly.  If  the  decision  of  the  presiding 
officer  is  not  satisfactory,  any  one  member 
may  object  to  it,  and  have  the  question 
decided  by  tbe  assembly.  This  is  called 
appealing  from  the  decision  of  the  chair. 
The  question  is  then  stated  by  the  presiding 
officer,  on  the  appeal,  namely:  shall  the  de- 
cision of  the  chair  stand  as  the  decision  of  the 
assembly?  and  it  is  thereupon  debated  and 
decided  bv  the  assembly,  in  the  same  manner 
as  any  other  question;  except  that  the  pre- 
siding officer  is  allowed  to  take  a  part  in  the 
debate*  which,  on  ordinary  occasions,  he  is 
prohibited  from  doing,  [^j  326.] 

READING  PAPERS. 

155,  Reading  of  Papers :  When 
Allowed.  —  It  is,  for  obvious  reasons,  a 
general  rule,  that,  where  papers  are  laid  be- 

*  It  would  not  be  considered  appropriate  for  the  presiding 
officer  to  participate  in  the  debate. — J.  J.  I. 


LEAYE   TO   HEAD    PAPERS.  91 

fore  a  deliberative  assembly,  for  its  action, 
every  member  has  a  right  to  have  them  once 
read  at  the  table,  before  he  can  be  compelled 
to  vote  on  them;  and,  consequently,  when 
the  reading  of  any  paper,  relative  to  a  ques- 
tion before  the  assembly,  is  called  for  under 
this  rule,  no  question  need  be  made  as  to  the 
reading;  the  paper  is  read  by  the  clerk,  under 
the  direction  of  the  presiding  officer,  as  a 
matter  of  course. 

156.  Papers   Not    Within  the    Rule 
Can  Only  be  Read  on  Leave. — But,  with 
the  exception  of  papers  coming  under  this 
rule,  it   is  not  the  right  of  any  member  to- 
read   himself,  or   to   have   read,  any   paper, 
book,  or   document   whatever,  without   the 
leave  of  the  assembly,  upon  a  motion  made 
and  a  question   put  for   the  purpose.     The 
delay  and  interruption,  which  would  other- 
wise  ensue   from  reading  every  paper  that 
might  be  called  for,  show  the  absolute  neces- 
sity of  restricting  the  rule  within  the  nar- 
rowest possible  limits,  consistently  with  per- 
mitting  everv    member   to    have    as   much 
information  as  possible,  on  the  subjects  in 
reference  to  which  he  is  about  to  vote. 

157.  Leave  to    Read    Papers  :     Ob- 
tained How. — When,  therefore,  a  member 


9#  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

desires  that  any  paper,,  book,  or  document, 
on  the  table,  whether  printed  or  written 
(except  as  above  mentioned)  should  be  read 
for  his  own  information,  or  that  of  the  as- 
sembly; or  desires  to  read  any  such  paper, 
book,  or  document,  in  his  place,  in  the 
course  of  a  debate,  or  otherwise;  or  even  to 
read  his  own  speech,  which  he  has  prepared 
beforehand  and  committed  to  writing;  in 
all  these  cases,  if  any  objection  is  made, 
he  must  obtain  leave  of  the  assembly,  for 
the  reading,  by  a  motion  and  vote  for  the 
purpose. 

158.  Reading    Generally   Allowed. — 
When  the  reading  of  a  paper  is  evidently  for 
information,  and   not  for   delay,  it   is  the 
usual  practice   for  the  presiding  officer  to 
allow  of  it,  unless  objection  is  made,  in  which 
case  leave  must  be  asked;  and  this  is  seldom 
refused,    where   there  is  no   intentional   or 
gross  abuse  of  the  time  and  patience  of  the 
assembly. 

159.  Reading  Papers  in   Full  Once 
May  be   Demanded. — It  is  not  now  the 
practice,  as  it  once  was,  in  legislative  assem- 
blies, to  read  all  papers  that  are  presented, 
especially  when  they  are  referred  to  commit- 
tees   immediately    on     their     presentation; 


MOTION"   MAY   BE   WITHDRAWN.  93 

tftough  the  right  of  every  member  to  insist 
upon  one  reading  is  still  admitted.  It  would 
be  impossible,  with  the  amount  of  business 
done  by  legislative  bodies,  at  the  present  day, 
to  devote  much  of  their  time  to  the  reading 
of  papers. 

160.  Motion  for  Reading  of  Paper  if 
Resisted  Must    be    First    Decided. — 
When,  in   the   course  of  a  debate  or  other 
proceeding,  the  reading  of  a  paper  is  called 
for,  and    a   question   is  made  upon   it,  this 
question  is  incidental  to  the  former,  and  must 
be  first  decided. 

WITHDRAWAL  OF   A   MOTION. 

161.  Motion   May    be    Withdrawn: 
How. — A   motion,    when   regularly    made, 
seconded,  and  proposed  from   the   chair,  is 
then  in  the  possession  of  the  assembly,  and 
cannot   be     withdrawn    by   the    mover,    or 
directly  disposed  of  in  any  manner,  but  by  a 
vote;    hence,    if    the   mover   of   a    question 
wishes  to  modify  it,  or  to  substitute  a  dif- 
ferent one  in  its  place,  he  must  obtain  the 
leave  of  the  assembly  for  that  purpose;  which 
leave  can  only  be  had,  if  objection  is  made, 
by  a  motion  and  question  in  the  usual  mode 
of  proceeding,     [ 


94  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

162.  Decision  :  Effect   of. — If  this  mo- 
tion is  decided  in  the  affirmative,  the  motion 
to  which  it  relates  is  thereby  removed  from 
before  the  assembly,  as  if  it  had  never  been 
moved;  if  in  the  negative,  the  business  pro- 
ceeds as  before. 

SUSPENSION  OF  A  RULE. 

163.  Rules  Suspended  :  How,  When, 
and  Purpose  of. — When  any  contemplated 
motion  or  proceeding  is  rendered  impracti- 
cable,   by   reason   of   the  existence  of   some 
special  rule  by  which  it  is  prohibited,  it  has 
become  an  established  practice  in  this  coun- 
try, to  suspend  or  dispense  with  the  rule,  for 
the  purpose  of  admitting  the  proceeding  or 
motion  which  is  desired.     This  can  only  be 
done  by  a  motion  and  question;  and,  where 
this   course   is   taken   in  order  to  a  motion 
having  reference  to  a  proposition  then  under 
consideration,  a  motion  to  suspend  the  rule 
supersedes  the  original  question  for  the  time 
being,  and  is  first  to  be  decided. 

164.  Provision     for     Suspension     of 
Rules  on  Occasion:  Usual  in  Codes.— 
It  is  usual,  in  the  code  of  rules  adopted  by 
deliberative  assemblies,  and  especially  legis- 
lative bodies,  to  provide  that  a  certain  mini- 


SUBSIDIARY   MOTIONS.  95 

ber  exceeding  a  majority,  as  two  thirds  or 
three  fourths,  shall  be  competent  to  the  sus- 
pension of  a  rule  in  a  particular  case;  where 
this  is  not  provided,  there  seems  to  be  no 
other  mode  of  suspending  or  dispensing  with 
a  rule  than  by  general  consent. 

AMENDMENT  OF  AMEND- 
MENTS. 

165.  Question     on     Amendment    to 
Amendment    Must   be   First   Put.— in 
treating  of  amendments,  it  has  already  been 
seen,  that   it  is  allowable  to  amend  a  pro- 
posed amendment;  and  that  the  question  on 
such  sub-amendment  must  necessarily  be  put 
and  decided  before  putting  the  question  on 
the  amendment.     The  former  is  incidental 
to  the  latter,  and  supersedes  it  for  the  time 
being. 

SEC.  III.     SUBSIDIARY  QUES- 
TIONS. 

166.  Subsidiary  Motions :  What  Are 
and  Effect  of. — Subsidiary,  or   secondary, 
questions   or   motions,  as   has   already   been 
stated,  are  those  which  relate  to  a  principal 
motion,  and  are  made  use  of  to  enable  the 


96  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

assembly  to  dispose  of  it  in  the  most  appro- 
priate manner.  These  motions  have  the 
effect  to  supersede,  and,  in  some  cases,  when 
decided  one  way,  to  dispose  of,  the  principal 
question.  They  are  also  of  different  degrees 
among  themselves,  and,  according  to  their 
several  natures,  supersede,  and  sometimes 
dispose  of,  one  another. 

167.  Subsidiary    Motions     Stated. — 
The  subsidiary  motions  in  common  use  are 
the  following,  namely: — lie  on  the  table, — 
the  previous  question, — postponement,  either 
indefinite  or  to  a  day  certain, — commitment, 
— and  amendment. 

168.  Subsidiary  Motions  Can  Gener- 
ally be  Applied  Only  to  Main  Question: 
Not  to  Each  Other. — It  is  a  general  rule, 
with   certain  exceptions  which  will   be  im- 
mediately mentioned,  that  subsidiary  motions 
cannot  be  applied  to   one   another;  as,   for 
example,    suppose    a    motion    to    postpone, 
commit,  or  amend  a  principal    question,  it 
cannot  be  moved  to  suppress  the  motion  to 
postpone,  etc.,  by  putting  a  previous  question 
on  it;  or,  suppose   the  previous  question  is 
moved,  or  a  commitment,  or  amendment,  of 
a  main  question,  it  cannot  be  moved  to  post- 
pone  the  previous  question,  or  the  motion 


EXCEPTIONS  TO  PREVIOUS  RULE.    97 

for  commitment  or  amendment.  The  reasons 
for  this  rule  are:  1.  It  would  be  absurd  to 
separate  the  appendage  from  its  principal;. 
2.  It  would  be  a  piling  of  questions  one  on 
another,  which,  to  avoid  embarrassment,  is 
not  allowed;  and,  3.  The  same  result  maybe 
reached  more  simply  by  voting  against  the* 
motion  which  it  is  attempted  to  dispose  of  by 
another  secondary  motion. 

169.  Exceptions  to  Previous  Rule. — 
The  exceptions  to  the  rule  above  stated  are, 
that  motions  to  postpone  (either  to  a   day 
certain   or   indefinitely),  to   commit,   or   to 
amend,  a  principal  question,  may  be  amended 
for  the  reason,  that  "  the  useful  character  of 
amendment  gives  it  a  privilege  of  attaching 
itself  to  a  secondary  and  privileged  motion;" 
that  is,  a  subsidiary  motion  to  carry  out  and 
improve  another  may  be  applied  to  that  other, 
but  a  subsidiary  motion  to  dispose  of  or  sup- 
press another  is  not  admissible.     Hence,  the 
subsidiary   motions  above  mentioned  may  be 
amended. 

170.  Previous    Question    Cannot    be 
Amended  :    Why. — A   previous  question, 
however,  cannot   be  amended;  the  nature  of 
it  not   admitting   of  any    change.     Parlia- 


98  PARLIAMEJSTTAKY   PRACTICE. 

mentary  usage*  has  fixed  its  form  to  be, 
shall  the  main  question  be  now  put?  that  is, 
at  this  instant;  and,  as  the  present  instant  is 
but  one,  it  cannot  admit  of  any  modification; 
and  to  change  it  to  the  next  day  or  any  other 
moment  is  without  example  or  utility.  For 
the  same  reasons,  also,  that  the  form  of  it  is 
fixed  by  parliamentary  usage,  and  is  already 
as  simple  as  it  can  be,  a  motion  to  lie  on  the 
table  cannot  be  amended. 

LIE  ON  THE  TABLE. 

171.  Motion  to  Lay  on  the  Table: 
Object  and  Rank  of. — This  motion  is 
usually  resorted  to,  when  the  assembly  hag 
something  else  before  it,  which  claims  its 
present  attention,  and  therefore  desires  to  lay 
aside  a  proposition  for  a  short  but  indefinite 
time,  reserving  to  itself  the  power  to  take  it 
up  when  convenient.  This  motion  takes 
precedence  of  and  supersedes  all  the  other 
subsidiary  motions. 


*  This  is  not  the  present  usage.  The  customary  formula  is 
u  Shall  the  previous  question  be  now  ordered?11  or  an  equiv- 
alent expression.  If  the  decision  is  affirmative,  then  the  pre- 
siding officer  submits  the  pending  questions  in  their  order, 
without  further  debate.  The  previous  question  remains 
operative  till  the  main  question  is  reached  and  disposed  of.— 
J.  J.  I. 


PREVIOUS   QUESTION.  99 

172.  Affirmative  Decision  :  Effect  of. 

— If  decided  in  the  affirmative,  the  principal 
motion,  together  with  all  the  other  motions, 
subsidiary  and  incidental,  connected  with  it, 
is  removed  from  before  the  assembly,  until  it 
is  again  taken  up;  which  it  may  be,  by  motion 
and  vote,  at  any  time,  when  the  assembly 
pleases. 

173.  Negative  Decision  :  Effect  of. — 
If  decided  in  the  negative,  the  business  pro- 
ceeds in  the  same  manner  as  if  the  motion 
had  never  been  made. 

PREVIOUS  QUESTION. 

174.  Previous     Question :     Relative 
Standing  of. — This  motion  has  already  been 
described   (63),  and   the  nature  and  effect  of 
it  fully  stated.     It  stands  in  an  equal  degree 
with  all  the  other  subsidiary  motions,  except 
the   motion  to  lie  on  the  table;  and  conse- 
quently, if  first  moved,  is  not  subject  to  be 
superseded  by  a  motion  to  postpone,  commit, 
or  amend. 

175.  Previous  Question  :  Effect  of. — 
If  the  previous  question  is  moved  before  the 
others  above   mentioned,   and    put  to    the 
question,  it  has  the  effect  to  prevent  those 
motions  from  being  made  at  all;  for,  if  de- 


100  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

cided  affirmatively,  to  wit,  that  the  main 
question  shall  now  be  put,  it  would  of  course 
be  contrary  to  the  decision  of  the  assembly, 
and  therefore  against  order,  to  postpone^ 
commit,  or  amend;  and  if  decided  nega- 
tively, to  wit,  that  the  main  question  shall 
not  now  be  put,  this  takes  the  main  ques- 
tion out  of  the  possession  of  the  assem- 
bly, for  the  day,  so  that  there  is  then 
nothing  before,  it  to  postpone,  commit,  or 
amend.* 

POSTPONEMENT. 

176.  Motion  to  Postpone  :  May  be 
Amended  How. — The  motion  to  postpone 
is  either  indefinite,  or  to  a  day  certain;  and, 
in  both  these  forms,  may  be  amended;,  in 
the  former,  by  making  it  to  a  day  certain, — 
in  the  latter,  by  substituting  one  day  for  an- 
other. But,  in  the  latter  case,  propositions  t 
to  substitute  different  days  for  that  originally 
named,  bear  more  resemblance  to  proposi- 
tions for  filling  blanks,  than  they  do  to 
amendments,  and  should  be  considered  and 
treated  accordingly. 

*  In  the  house  of  representatives  of  Massachusetts,  as  the 
effect  of  a  negative  decision  of  the  previous  question  is  not  to 
remove  the  principal  question  from  before  the  house,  that 
question  is  still  open  to  postponement,  commitment,  or 
amendment,  notwithstanding  such  negative  decision. 


RANK   OF   THIS   MOTION.  101 

177.  Illustration—If,  therefore,  a   mo- 
tion is  made  for  an  indefinite  postponement, 
it  may  be  moved  to  amend  ,tlu?  uiotion,  by 
making  it  to  a'  day  certain.  *  If  any  other  day 
is  desired,  it  may  be  moved  as  an  amendment 
to  the  amendment;  or  it  may  be  moved  as  an 
independent  motion,  when  the  amendment 
has  been  rejected. 

178.  Illustration. — If  a  motion  is  made 
for  a  postponement  to  a  day  certain,  it  may 
be  amended   by  the   substitution  of  a  dif- 
ferent day;  but  in  this  case,  a  more  simple 
and   effectual    mode    of    proceeding    is    to 
consider  the  day  as  a  blank,  to  be  filled  in 
the  usual  manner,  beginning  with  the  longest 
time. 

179.  Rank  of  this  Motion. — This  mo- 
tion stands  in  the  same  degree  with  motions 
for  the  previous  question. — to  commit, — and 
to  amend;  and,  if  first  made,  is  not  suscep* 
tible  of  being  superseded  by  them. 

180.  Affirmative  and    Negative  De> 
cisions  :  Effect  of. — If  a  motion  for  post- 
ponement is  decided  affirmatively,  the  pro- 
position to  which  it  is  applied  is  removed 
from  before  the  assembly,  with  all  its  appen- 
dages and  incidents,  and  consequently  there 
is  no  ground   for  either  of  the  other  subsid- 


102  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

iary  motions;  if  decided  negatively,  that 
the  proposition  shall  not  be  postponed, 
that  .question  may  then  ,be  suppressed  by 
the  previous  question,  or  committed,  or 
amended. 

COMMITMENT. 

181.  Motion    to    Commit :    May   be 
Amended  How. — A  motion  to  commit,  or 
recommit  (which  is  the  term  used  when  the 
proposition  has  already  been  once  commit- 
ted), may  be  amended,  by  the  substitution 
of  one  kind  of  committee  for  another,  or  by 
enlarging  or  diminishing  the  number  of  the 
members   of    the    committee,    as   originally 
proposed,   or   by   instructions   to   the   com- 
mittee. 

182.  Rank   of  Motion.  —  This  motion 
stands  in  the  same  degree  with  the  previous 
question   and    postponement — and,   if    first 
made,  is  not  superseded  by  them — but  it  takes 
precedence  of  a  motion  to  amend. 

183.  Affirmative  and  Negative  Deci- 
sions :  Effect  of. — If  decided  affirmatively, 
the  proposition  is  removed  from  before  the 
assembly;    and,    consequently,    there   is   no 
ground  for   the   previous  question,    or    for 
postponement,  or  amendment;  if  negatively, 


MAY   BE   SUPERSEDED.  103 

to  wit,  that  the  principal  question  shall  not 
be  committed,  that  question  may  then  be 
suppressed  by  the  previous  question,  or  post- 
poned, or  amended. 

AMENDMENT. 

184.  Motion     to     Amend     May    be 
Amended  :  Rank  of  Motion. — A  motion 
to  amend,  as  has  been  seen,  may  be  itself 
amended.    It  stands  in  the  same  degree  only 
with   the  previous   question   and  indefinite 
postponement,  and  neither,  if  first  moved,  is 
superseded  by  the  other. 

185.  May  be  Superseded :  How  and 
Why. — But  this  motion  is  liable  to  be  super- 
seded  by  a   motion  to   postpone   to   a  day 
certain;  so  that  amendment  and  postpone- 
ment  competing  the  latter  is  to  be  first  put. 
The  reason  is,  that  a  question  for  amend- 
ment is  not  suppressed  by  postponing  or  ad- 
journing the  principal  question,  but  remains 
before   the   assembly,    whenever    the    ::^ain 
question  is  resumed;  for  otherwise,  it  might 
happen,  that  the  occasion  for  other  urgent 
business  might  go  by  and  be  lost  by  length 
of  debate  on  the  amendment,  if  the  assem- 
bly  had   no  power  to   postpone  the  whole 
subject. 


104  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

186,  A   motion    to   amend   may  also   De 
superseded  by  a  motion  to  commit;  so  that 
the  latter,  though  consequently  moved,  is  to 
be  first  put;  because,  "in  truth,  it  facilitates 
and  befriends  the  motion  to  amend. 

187.  The  effect  of  both  a  negative  and  an 
affirmative     decision    of    amendments    has 
already  been  considered  (94  to  127). 


OEDER   OF   BUSINESS   DESIRABLE.      105 


CHAPTER  XL 

OF  THE   ORDER   OF  PROCEED- 
ING. 

188.  Order  of  Priority  Without  As- 
signment :    Subject  to    Discretion    of 
Presiding     Officer    Unless    Assembly 
Decides. — When  several  subjects  are  before 
the  assembly,  that  is,  on  their  table  for  con- 
sideration (for  there  can  be  but  a  single  sub- 
ject under  consideration  at  the  same  time), 
and  no  priority  has  been  given  to  any  one 
over  another,    the   presiding   officer   is   no* 
precisely   bound   to   any   order,  as   to   what 
matters  shall  be  first  taken  up;  but  is  left  to 
his  own  discretion,  unless  the  assembly  on 
a   question   xlccide  to  take  up  a  particular 
subject. 

189.  Calendar  and  Order  of  Business 
Desirable :     Why. — A    settled    order    of 
business,  however,  where  the  proceedings  of 
an  assembly  are  likely  to  last  a  considerable 
time,  and   the   matters   before  it  are  some- 


106  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

what  numerous,  is  useful  if  not  necessary  for 
the  government  of  the  presiding  officer,  and 
to  restrain  individual  members  from  calling 
up  favorite  measures,  or  matters  under  their 
special  charge,  out  of  their  just  time.  It  is 
also  desirable,  for  directing  the  discretion 
of  the  assembly,  when  a  motion  is  made 
to  take  up  a  particular  matter,  to  the  prej- 
udice of  others,  which  are  of  right  entitled 
to  be  first  attended  to,  in  the  general  order 
of  business. 

190.  Order  Established  :  How.— The 
order  of  business  may  be  established  in  virtue 
of  some  general  rule,  or   by   special  orders 
relating   to   each     particular    subject;    and 
must,  of  course,  necessarily  depend  upon  the 
nature  and  amount  of  the  matters  before  the 
assembly. 

191.  Natural  Order  of  Consideration  : 
"What. — The  natural  order,  in  considering 
and  amending  any  paper,  which  consists  of 
several  distinct  propositions,  io,  to  begin  at 
the  beginning,  and  proceed   through  it  by 
paragraphs;  and  this  order  of  proceeding,  if 
strictly  adhered  to,  as  it  should  always  be  in 
numerous    assemblies,    would    prevent    any 
amendment   in  a  former  part,  from   being 
admissible,    after  a  latter    part    had    been 


EXCEPTION  IN"  CASE  OF  PREAMBLE.     107 

amended;  but  this  rule  does  not  seem  to 
be  so  essential  to  be  observed  in  smaller 
bodies,  in  which  it  may  often  be  advan- 
tageous to  allow  of  going  from  one  part  to  a 
paper  to  another,  for  the  purpose  of  amend- 
ments. 

192.  Exception  in  Case  of  Preamble. 
— To  this   natural  order  of  beginning  at  the 
beginning,  there  is  one  exeption  according 
to  parliamentary  usage,  where  a   resolution 
or  series  of  resolutions,  or  other  paper,  has  a 
preamble  or  title;  in  which  case,  the  pream- 
ble or  title  is  postponed,  until  the  residue  of 
the  paper  is  gone  through  with. 

193.  Proposition  Containing  Several 
Paragraphs  :  How  Considered. — In  con- 
sidering a  proposition  consisting  of  several 
paragraphs,   the   course   is,   for  the    whole 
paper   to  be  read  entirely  through,  in   the 
first  place,  by  the  clerk;  then,  a  second  time, 
by   the    presiding    officer,    by    paragraphs; 
pausing  at  the  end  of  each,  and  putting  ques- 
tions  for  amending,  if  amendments  are  pro- 
posed; and,  when  the  whole  paper  has  been 
gone  through  with,  in  this  manner,  the  pre- 
siding officer  puts  the  final  question  on  agree- 
ing to   or    adopting    the   whole    paper,    as 
amended,  or  unamended. 


108  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

194.  Reports      from       Committees : 
Order  of  Consideration.— When  a  paper, 
which  has  been  referred  to  a  committee,  and 
reported  back  to  the  assembly,  is  taken  up 
for  consideration,  the  amendments  only  are 
first  read,  in  course,  by  the  clerk.     The  pre- 
siding officer  then  reads  the  first,  and  puts  it 
to  the  question,  and  so  on  until  the   whole 
are  adopted   or  rejected,  before  any   other 
amendment  is  admitted,  with  the  exception 
of  an  amendment  to  an  amendment.     When 
the  amendments  reported  by  the  committee 
have   been   thus  disposed    of,  the  presiding 
officer   pauses,  and   gives   time   for  amend- 
ments  to  be  proposed  in  the  assembly  to  the 
body  of  the  paper  (which  he  also  does,  if  the 
paper  has  been  reported  without  amendments, 
putting   no  questions    but   on   amendments 
proposed);  and   when  through  the  whole,  he 
puts  the  question  on  agreeing  to  or  adopting 
the  paper,  as  the  resolution,  order,  etc.,  of 
the  assembly. 

195.  Final   Question  :    How  Stated, 
and  Order  Thereon. — The  final  question 
is  sometimes  stated  merely  on  the  acceptance 
of  the  report,  but  a  better  form  is  on  agree- 
ing with  the  committee  in  the  resolution, 
order,  or  whatever  else  the  conclusion  of  the 


KEPORTS   FROM    COMMITTEES.  109 

report  may  be,  as  amended,  or  without  amend- 
ment; and  the  resolution  or  order  is  then  to 
be  entered  in  the  journal  as  the  resolution, 
etc.,  of  the  assembly,  and  not  as  the  report 
of  the  committee  accepted. 

196.  Reports  from  Committees  :  En- 
tirely New  Proposition  Treated  as  an 
Amendment. — When  the  paper  referred  to 
a  committee  is  reported  back,  as  amended, 
in  a  new  draft  (which  may  be  and  often  is 
done,  where  the  amendments  are  numerous 
and  comparatively   unimportant),    the   new 
draft  is  to  be  considered  as  an  amendment, 
and    is   to   be   first   amended,  if   necessary, 
and   then  put  to  the  question  as  an  amend- 
ment  reported    by  the   committee;   or,    the 
course  may  be,  first  to  accept  the  new  draft, 
as   a  substitute  for  the  original  paper,  and 
then  to  treat  it  as  such. 

197.  Simultaneous    Pending     Ques- 
tions :  Order  of  Consideration.— It  often 
happens,  that,  besides  a  principal  question, 
there   are  several  others  connected  with  it, 
pending  at  the  same  time,  which  are  to  be 
taken   in  their  other;  as,  for  example,  sup- 
pose, first9  a  principal  motion;  second,  a  mo- 
tion to  amend;  third,  a  motion  to  commit; 
fourth,  the  preceding  motions  being  pending, 


110  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

a  question  of  order  arises  in  the  debate, 
which  gives  occasion,  fifth,  to  a  question  of 
privilege,  and  this  leads,  sixth,  to  a  subsid- 
iary motion,  as,  to  lie  on  the  table.  The 
regular  course  of  proceeding  requires  the 
motion  to  lie  on  the  table  to  be  first  put;  if 
this  is  negatived,  the  question  of  privilege  is 
then  settled;  after  that  comes  the  question 
of  order;  then  the  question  of  commitment; 
if  that  is  negatived,  the  question  of  amend- 
ment is  taken;  and,  lastly,  the  main  question. 
This  example  will  sufficiently  illustrate  the 
manner  in  which  questions  may  grow  out  of 
one  another,  and  in  what  order  they  are  to 
be  decided.* 

198.  No  Action  ,  Can  be  Taken  Till 
Question  Stated. — When  a  motion  is  made 
and  seconded,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  presiding 
officer  to  propose  it  to  the  assembly:  until 
this  is  done,  it  is  not  a  question  before  the 
assembly,  to  be  acted  upon  or  considered  in 
any  manner;  and  consequently  it  is  not  then 
in  order  for  any  member  to  rise  either  to  de- 
bate it,  or  to  make  any  motion  in  relation  to 
it  whatever. 

*  The  order  of  motions,  for  the  disposal  of  any  question,  is 
usually  fixed  by  a  special  rule  in  legislative  assemblies.  See 
note  to  paragraph  61. 


RIGHT  TO   FLOOK.  Ill 

199.  Contemporaneous    Proposal    of 
Principal     and     Subsidiary     Motions 
Vicious  and  Intolerable. — It  is  therefore 
a  most  unparliamentary  and  abusive  proceed- 
ing to  allow  a  principal  motion  and  a  sub- 
sidiary one  relating  to  it  to  be  proposed  and 
stated  together,  and  to  be  put  to  the  question 
in  their  order;  as  is  done,  when  a  member 
moves  a  principal  question,  a  resolution,  for 
example,  and,  at  the  same  time,  the  previous 
question,  or  that  the  resolution  lie  on  the 
table.     In   such  a  case,  the  presiding  officer 
should  take  no  notice  whatever  of  the  sub- 
sidiary motion,  but  should  propose  the  prin- 
cipal one  by  itself  in  the  usual  manner,  be- 
fore allowing  any  other  to  be  made.     Other 
members,  then,  would   not  be   deprived  of 
their  rights  of  debate,  etc.,  in  relation  in  the 
subject  moved. 

200.  Right  to  Floor  Cannot  be  Inter- 
rupted.— When  a  member  has  obtained  the 
floor,  he  cannot  be  cut  off  from  addressing 
the  assembly,  on  the  question  before  it;  nor, 
when  speaking,  can  he  be  interrupted  in  his 
speech,    by   any   other  member  rising  and 
moving  an  adjournment,  or  for  the  orders  of 
the  day,  or  by  making  any  other  privileged 
motion  of  the  same  kind;  it  being  a  general 


112  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

rule,  that  a  member  in  possession  of  the  floor, 
or  proceeding  with  his  speech,  cannot  be 
taken  down  or  interrupted,  but  by  a  call  to 
order;  and  the  question  of  order  being  de- 
cided, he  is  still  to  be  heard  through.  A  call 
for  an  adjournment,  or  for  the  orders  of  the 
clay,  or  for  the  question,  by  gentlemen  in 
their  seats,  is  not  a  motion;  as  no  motion 
can  be  made,  without  rising  and  addressing 
the  chair,  and  being  called  to  by  the  presid- 
ing officer.  Such  calls  for  the  question  are 
themselves  breaches  of  order,  which,  though 
the  member  who  has  risen  may  respect 
them,  as  an  expression  of  the  impatience 
of  the  assembly  at  further  debate,  do  not 
prevent  him  from  going  on  if  he  pleases. 
[1  328.] 


PRESIDING   OFFICER. 


CHAPTEE  XII. 
OF  ORDER    IN  DEBATE. 

201.  Forensic     and     Parliamentary 
Debate  :    Difference   Between.— Debate 
in  a  deliberative  assembly  must  be  distin- 
guished from  forensic  debate,  or  that  which 
takes  place  before  a  judicial  tribunal;    the 
former  being,  in  theory,  at   least,  more  the 
expression    of    individual    opinions  among 
the  members  of  the  same  body;  the  latter 
more  a  contest  for  victory,  between  the  dis- 
putants, before  a  distinct  and  independent 
body;  the  former  not  admitting  of  replies; 
the  latter  regarding  reply  as  the  right  of  one 
of  the  parties.* 

202.  Presiding  Officer  :  Function  of. 
— It   is   a   general   rule,  in   all   deliberative 
assemblies,  that   the  presiding  officer  shall 

*  An  exception  to  this  rule  is  sometimes  made  in  favor  of 
the  mover  of  a  question,  who  is  allowed,  at  the  close  of  the 
debate,  to  reply  to  the  arguments  brought  against  his  mo- 
tion; but  this  is  a  matter  of  favor  and  indulgence,  and  not  of 
right. 


Ill 


PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 


not  participate  in  the  debate,  or  other  pro- 
ceedings, in  any  other  capacity  than  as  such 
officer.  He  is  only  allowed,  therefore,  to 
state  matters  of  fact  within  his  knowledge; 
to  inform  the  assembly  on  points  of  order  or 
the  course  of  proceeding,  when  called  upon 
for  that  purpose,  or  when  he  finds  it  neces- 
sary to  do  so;  and,  on  appeals  from  his  deci- 
sion on  questions  of  order,  to  address  the 
assembly  in  debate. 

SEC.  I.    AS  TO  THE    MANNER 
OF  SPEAKING. 

203.  Recognition  :  How  Obtained. — 

When  a  member  desires  to  address  the  as- 
sembly, on  any  subject  before  it  (as  well  as 
to  make  a  motion),  he  is  to  rise  and  stand  up 
in  his  place,  uncovered,  and  to  address  him- 
self not  to  the  assembly,  or  any  particular 
member,  but  to  the  presiding  officer,  who, 
on  hearing  him,  calls  to  him  by  his  name, 
that  the  assembly  may  take  notice  who  it  is 
that  speaks,  and  give  their  attention  accord- 
ingly. If  any  question  arises,  as  to  who 
shall  be  entitled  to  the  floor,  where  several 
members  rise  at  or  nearly  at  the  same  time, 
it  is  decided  in  the  manner  already  de- 
scribed (46),  as  to  obtaining  the  floor  to  make 
a  motion. 


RECOGNITION.  115 

204.  Recognition  :    Preference    in. — 

It  is  customary,  indeed,  for  the  presiding 
officer,  after  a  motion  has  been  made,  sec- 
onded, and  proposed,  to  give  the  floor  to 
the  mover,*  in  preference  to  others,  if  he 
rises  to  speak;  or,  on  resuming  a  debate, 
after  an  adjournment,  to  give  the  floor,  if  he 
desires  it,  to  the  mover  of  the  adjournment, 
in  preference  to  other  members;  or,  where 
two  or  more  members  claim  the  floor,  to  prefer 
him  who  is  opposed  to  the  measure  in  ques- 
tion, but,  in  all  these  cases,  the  determination 
of  the  presiding  officer  may  be  overruled  by 
the  assembly. 

205.  Floor  Cannot  be    Temporarily 
Yielded. — It  is  sometimes  thought,  that, 
when  a  member,  in   the   course  of  debate, 
breaks  off  his  speech,  and  gives  up  the  floor 
to   another  for  a  particular  purpose,  he   is 
entitled  to  it  again,  as  of  right,  when  that 
purpose  is  accomplished;  but,  though  this  is 
generally   conceded,    yet,    when  a    member 
gives    up   the    floor    for    one    purpose,   he 
does  so  for  all;   and  it  is  not  possible  for 

*  Sometimes  a  member,  instead  of  proposing  his  motion,  at 
first,  proceeds  with  his  speech;  but,  in  such  a  case,  he  is  liable 
to  be  taken  down  to  order,  unless  he  states  that  he  intends  to 
conclude  with  a  motion,  and  informs  the  assembly  what  that 
motion  is,  and  then  he  may  be  allowed  to  proceed. 


116  PARLIAMENTAKY   PRACTICE. 

the  presiding  officer  to  take  notice  of  and 
enforce  agreements  of  this  nature  between 
members.* 

206.  Mention  of  Members  by  Name  in 
Debate  Disorderly  :  Why. — No  person, 
in  speaking,  is  to   mention  a  member  then 
present  by  his  name;  but  to  describe  him  by 
his  seat  in   the  assembly,  or  as  the  member 
who  spoke  last,  or  last  but  one,  or   on  the 
other  side  of  the  question,  or  by  some  other 
equivalent  expression.     The  purpose  of  this 
rule  is  to  guard  as  much  as  possible  against 
the  excitement  of  all  personal  feeling,  either 
of  favor  or  of  hostility,  by  separating,  as  it 
were,  the  official  from  the  personal  character 
of  each   member,  and  having  regard  to  the 
former  only  in  the  debate. 

207.  Presiding  Officer:  Authority  of 
in  Debate. — If  the  presiding  officer  rises  up 
to  speak,  any  other  member,  who  may  have 
risen  for  the  same  purpose,  ought  to  sit  down, 
in   order  that  the  former  may  be  first  heard; 
but  this  rule  does  not  authorize  the  presiding 
officer  to   interrupt  a  member  while  speak- 


*  This  is  not  the  practice  in  the  United  States.  A  member 
yielding  for  an  interruption  is  entitled  to  resume,  by  general 
usage,  unless  the  obvious  purpose  is  to  encroach  upon  the 
convenience  of  the  house. — J.  J.  I. 


DEMEANOR   IN   DEBATE.  11? 

ing,  or  to  cut  off  one  to  whom  be  has  given 
the  floor;  he  must  wait  like  other  members, 
until  such  member  has  done  speaking. 
[1  329.] 

208.  Demeanor  in   Debate.— A  mem- 
ber, while  speaking,  must  remain   standing 
in  his  place,  uncovered;  and,  when  he  has 
finished  liis  speech,  he  ought  to  resume  his 
seat;  but  if  unable  to  stand  without  pain  or 
inconvenience,  in   consequence  of  age,  sick- 
ness, or  other  infirmity,  he  may  be  indulged 
to  speak  sitting. 

SEC.  II.    AS   TO    THE   MATTER 
IN  SPEAKING. 

209.  Debate  Must  be  Germane  and 
Pertinent  and  Should  be  Interesting. 

— Every  question,  that  can  be  made  in  a 
deliberative  assembly,  is  susceptible  of  being 
debated,*  according  to  its  nature;  that  is,  t 
every  member  has  the  right  of  expressing 
his  opinion  upon  it.  Hence,  it  is  a  general 
rule,  and  the  principal  one  relating  to  this 
matter,  that,  in  debate,  those  who  speak  are 

*  In  legislative  bodies,  it  is  usual  to  provide,  that  certain- 
questions,  as,  for  example,  to  adjourn,  to  lie  on  the  table,  for 
the  previous  question,  or,  as  to  the  order  of  business,  shall  be 
decided  without  debate. 


118  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

to  confine  themselves  to  the  question,  and 
not  to  speak  impertinently,  or  beside  the 
subject.  So  long  as  a  member  has  the  floor, 
and  keeps  within  the  rule,  he  may  speak 
for  as  long  a  time  as  he  pleases;  though,  if 
an  uninteresting  speaker  trespasses  too  much 
upon  the  time  and  patience  of  the  assembly, 
the  members  seldom  fail  to  show  their  dis- 
satisfaction, in  some  way  or  other,  which  in- 
duces him  to  bring  his  remarks  to  a  close. 
[1  330.] 

210.  Indecent:  Reflections  Disorderly. 
—It  is  also  a  rulu  ..hat  no  person,  in  speak- 
ing, is  to   use  indboent  language  against  the 
proceedings   of   the   assembly,  or   to  reflect 
upon  any  of  its  prior  determinations,  unless 
he   means  to   conclude  his  remarks  with  a 
motion  to  rescind  such  determination;  but 
while  a  proposition   under  consideration  is 
still  pending,  and   not  adopted,  though  it 
may  have  been   reported   by  a  committee, 
reflections  on  ife  are   no  reflections  on  the 
assembly.     The  rule  applies  equally  to  the 
proceedings  of  committees;  which   are,  in- 
deed, the  proceedings  of  the  assembly. 

211.  Personalities   in    Debate     Dis- 
orderly.— Another  rule  in  speaking  is,  that 
no  member  is  at  liberty  to  digress  from  the 


PRESUMPTIONS.  119 

matter  of  the  question,  to  fall  upon  the  person 
of  another,  and  to  speak  reviling,  nipping,  or 
unmannerly  words  of  or  to  him.  The  nature 
or  consequences  of  a  measure  may  be  repro- 
bated in  strong  terms;  but  to  arraign  the 
motives  of  those  who  advocate  it,  is  a  person- 
ality and  against  order. 

212.  Presumptions  in  Favor  of  Per- 
tinency and  Relevancy.— It  is  very  often 
iin  extremely  difficult   and   delicate  matter 
to  decide   whether  the  remarks  of  a  mem- 
ber are  pertinent  or  relevant  to  the  question; 
but  it   will,   in    general,    be   safe    for    the 
presiding  officer  to  consider  them  so,  unless 
they   very   clearly   reflect,    in   an   improper 
manner,  either  upon  the  person  or  motives 
of   a   member,  or   upon    the   proceeding   of 
the     assembly;    or    the    member    speaking 
digresses  from    or  manifestly  mistakes  the 
question. 

213.  Subordinate    Supersede     Main 
Questions  and    Must   be    First  Con- 
sidered.— It  often  happens  in  the  consider- 
ation of  a  subject,  that,  while  the   general 
question   remains   the   same,  the   particular 
question  before  the  assembly  is  constantly 
changing;    thus,    while,    for    example,    the 
general   question   is   on   the   adoption  of  a 


120  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

series  of  resolutions,  the  particular  question 
may,  at  one  moment,  be  on  an  amendment; 
at  another  on  postponement;  and,  again,  on 
the  previous  question.  In  all  these  cases, 
the  particular  question  supersedes,  for  the 
time,  the  main  question;  and  those  who 
speak  to  it  must  confine  their  remarks  ac- 
cordingly. The  enforcement  of  order,  in 
this  respect,  requires  the  closest  attention  on 
the  part  of  the  presiding  officer.  [T  331.] 

214.  Right  to  Proceed  When  Called 
to  Order  :  How  Decided.— When  a  mem- 
ber is  interrupted  by  the  presiding  officer,  or 
called  to  order  by  a  member,  for  irrelevancy 
or  departing  from  the  question,  a  question 
may   be   made   as   to   whether   he   shall  be 
allowed  to  proceed  in  his  remarks,  in    the 
manner  he  was  speaking  when  he  was  in- 
terrupted; but,  if  no  question  is   made,  or 
if  one  is  made  and  decided  in  the  negative, 
he  is  still  to  be  allowed  to  proceed  in  order, 
that  is,  abandoning  the  objectionable  course 
of  remark. 

SEC.  III.    AS  TO  TIMES  OF 
SPEAKING. 

215.  Generally  Member  Allowed  to 
Speak  but  Once  to  Same  Question.— 

The  general  rule,  in  all  deliberative  assem- 


EULE   215.  121 

blies,  unless  it  is  otherwise  specially  provided, 
is,  that  no  member  shall  speak  more  than 
once  to  the  same  question;*  although  the 
debate  on  that  question  may  be  adjourned 
and  continued  through  several  days;  and, 
although  a  member,  who  desires  to  speak  a 
second  time,  has,  in  the  course  of  the  debate, 
changed  his  opinion. 

216.  Rule    215 :     How    Construed.— 
This  rule  refers  to  the  same  question,  tech- 
nically  considered;    for,   if   a    resolution   is 
moved  and  debated,  and  then  referred   to  a 
committee,  those  who  speak  on  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  motion  may  speak  again  on  the 
question  presented  by  the  report  of  the  com- 
mittee, though  it   is  substantially  the  same 
question  with  the  former;  and,  so,  members, 
who  have  spoken  on  the  principal  or  main 
question,  may  speak  again  on  all  the  subsid- 
iary or    incidental  questions  arising  in  the 
course  of  the  debate.     [^]  332.] 

217.  Rule    215 :     How    Construed— 
The  rule,  as  to  speaking  but  once  on  a  ques- 
tion,   if   strictly    enforced,    will    prevent   a 
member  from  speaking  a  second  time,  with- 

*  The  mover  and  seconder,  if  they  do  not  speak  to  the  ques- 
tion, at  the  time  when  the  motion  is  made  and  seconded,  have 
the  same  right  with  other  members  to  address  the  assembly. 

[This  rule  is  seldom  enforced.— J.  J.  I.] 


122  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

out  the  general  consent  of  the  assembly,  so 
long  as  there  is  any  other  member  who 
himself  desires  to  speak;  but,  when  all  who 
desire  to  speak  have  spoken,  a  member 
may  speak  a  second  time  by  leave  of  the 
assembly.  x 

218.  Rule    215 :    How    Construed.— 
A  member  may  also  be  permitted  to  speak  a 
second   time,  in   the   same  debate,  in  order 
to  clear  a  matter  of  fact;  or  merely  to  ex- 
plain  himself  in  some  material  part  of  his 
speech;  or  to  the  orders  of  the  assembly,  if 
they  be  transgressed   (although  no  question 
may  be  made),  but  carefully  keeping  within 
that   line,  and   not  falling  into  the  matter 
itself.     [1  333.] 

219.  Interruption  in  Debate    Disor- 
derly.— It    is    sometimes    supposed,    that, 
because   a   member   has  a  right  to  explain 
himself,  he  therefore  has  a  right  to  inter-  I 
rupt   another    member,   while   speaking,    in 
order  to   make  the    explanation:    but   this 
is  a    mistake;    he  should    wait    until    the 
member  speaking    has  finished;    and  if    a 
member,  on  being  requested,  yields  the  floor 
for  an  explanation,  he  relinquishes  it  alto- 
gether.* 

*  This  is  not  the  usage  in  the  United  States.— J.  J.  I. 


AS   TO    STOPPING    DEBATE. 

SEC.  IV.    AS   TO  STOPPING 
DEBATE. 

220.  Previous    Question    if   Ordered 
Ends   Debate. — The  only  mode  in  use,  in 
this  country,  until  recently,  for  the  purpose 
of  putting  an  end  to  an  unprofitable  or  tire- 
some  debate,  was   by  moving  the  previous 
question;    the    effect   of   which   motion,    as 
already  explained,  if  decided  in  the  affirma- 
tive, is   to   require    the    main   or   principal 
question  to  be  immediately  taken.*     When 
this  question  is  moved,  therefore,  it  neces- 
sarily suspends  all  further  consideration  of 
the  main  question,  and  precludes  all  further 
debate  or  amendment  of  it;  though,  as  has 
been  seen,  it  stands  in  the  same  degree  with 
postponement,    amendment,    and     commit- 
ment; and,  unless  in  virtue  of  a  special  rule, 
cannot  be  moved  while  either  of  those  mo- 
tions is  pending. 

221.  Assembly  May  Agree  that  De- 
bate Shall  End  at  Specified  Time. — 
The  other  mode  of  putting  an  end  to  debate, 
which   has  recently   been    introduced    into 
use,  is  for  the  assembly  to  adopt  beforehand 
a  special  order  in  reference  to  a  particular 
subject,  that,  at   such  a  time   specified,  all 

*  Not  the  effect  now.    See  note  to  sec.  170.— J.  J.  I. 


124  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

debate  upon  it  shall  cease,  and  all  motions  or 
questions  pending  in  relation  to  it  shall  be 
decided. 

222.  Limitation  of  Debate  by  Limit- 
ing Time   of  Speaking.— Another  rule, 
which  has  lately    been   introduced   for   the 
purpose  of  shortening  rather  than  stopping 
debate,  is,  that  no  member  shall  be  permitted 
to  speak  more  than  a  certain  specified  time 
on   any   question;    so   that,  when   the   time 
allotted  has  expired,  the  presiding  officer  an- 
nounces the  fact,  and  the  member  speaking 
resumes  his  seat. 

SEC.  V.    AS   TO    DECORUM  IN 
DEBATE. 

223.  Member  Speaking  Not  to    Be 
Disturbed. — Every    member     having    the 
right  to  be  heard,  every   other   member  is 
bound  to  conduct  himself  in  such  a  manner, 
that  this  right  may  be  effectual.     Hence,  it 
is  a  rule  of  order,  as  well  as  of  decency,  that 
no   member   is   to    disturb    another   in   his 
speech    by   hissing,    coughing,   spitting;    by 
speaking,    or    whispering;    by    passing    be- 
tween the  presiding  officer  and  the  member 
speaking;     by    going   across   the   assembly- 
room,  or   walking   up   and   down  in  it;   or 


PKESIDIKG    OFFICER.  125 

by  any  other  disorderly  deportment,  which 
tends  to  disturb  or  disconcert  a  member  who 
is  speaking. 

224.  Member    Not    Able    to   Secure 
Respectful  Attention   Had  Better  Sit 
Down. — But,  if  a  member  speaking  finds, 
that  he  is  not  regarded  with  that  respectful 
attention,  which  his  equal  right  demands, — 
that  it  is  not  the  inclination  of  the  assembly 
to  hear  him, — and  that  by  conversation  or 
any  other  noise  they  endeavor  to  drown  his 
voice, — it   is   his   most    prudent   course    to 
submit  himself   to  the  pleasure  of   the  as- 
sembly,  and   to   sit  down;    for  it  scarcely 
ever    happens,    that    the    members    of    an 
assembly   are   guilty   of    this    piece    of    ill 
manners,  without   some  excuse  or  provoca- 
tion, or  that  they  are  so  wholly  inattentive 
to   one,    who     says     anything    worth   their 
hearing. 

225.  Presiding  Officer  :    Duty  of,  in 
Maintaining  Order. — It  is  the  duty  of  the 
presiding  officer,  in  such  a  case,  to  endeavor 
to  reduce  the  assembly  to  order  and  decorum; 
but,  if   his  repeated   calls  to  order,  and  his 
appeals  to  the  good  sense  and  decency  of  the 
members,  prove  ineffectual,  it  then  becomes 
his  duty  to  call  by  name  any  member  who  ob- 


126  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

stinately  persists  in  irregularity;  whereupon 
the  assembly  may  require  such  member  to 
withdraw;  who  is  then  to  be  heard,  if  he 
desires  it,  in  exculpation  and  to  withdraw; 
then  the  presiding  officer  states  the  offense 
committed,  and  the  assembly  considers  of 
the  kind  and  degree  of  punishment  to  be 
inflicted. 

226.  Presiding    Officer  May    Permit 
Disorder :  When. — If,  on  repeated  trials, 
the  presiding  officer  finds  that  the  assembly 
will  not  support  him  in  the  exercise  of  his 
authority,  he  will  then  be  justified,  but  not 
till   then,   in  permitting,  without  censure, 
every  kind  of  disorder.* 

SEC.  VI.    AS  TO  DISORDERLY 
WORDS. 

227.  If  a  member,  in  speaking,  makes  use 
of  language,  which  is  personally  offensive  to 
another,  or  insulting   to   the  assembly,  and 
the   member  offended,  or  any  other,  thinks 
proper   to   complain  of   it  to  the  assembly, 
the    course    of    proceeding    is    as    follows: 
[T  334.] 

228.  Offensive  Language  in  Debate  : 
How  Treated. — The  member  speaking  is 
immediately  interrupted  in  the  course  of  his 

*  This  is  a  bad  precept.— J.  J.  I. 


OFFENSIVE  LANGUAGE   IK   DEBATE.    127 

speech,  by  another  or  several  members  rising 
and  calling  to  order;  and,  the  member,  who 
objects  or  complains  of  the  words,  is  then 
called  upon  by  the  presiding  officer  to  state 
the  words  which  he  complains  of,  repeating 
them  exactly  as  he  conceives  them  to  have 
been  spoken,  in  order  that  they  may  be 
reduced  to  writing  by  the  clerk;  or  the 
member  complaining,  without  being  so 
called  upon,  may  proceed  at  once  to  state 
the  words  either  verbally  or  in  writing,  and 
desire  that  the  clerk  may  take  them  down 
at  the  table.  The  presiding  officer  may  then 
direct  the  clerk  to  take  them  down;  but  if 
he  sees  the  objection  to  be  a  trivial  one,  and 
thinks  there  is  no  foundation  for  their  being 
thought  disorderly,  he  will  prudently  delay 
giving  any  such  directions,  in  order  not  un- 
necessarily to  interrupt  the  proceedings; 
though  if  the  members  generally  seem  to  be 
in  favor  of  having  the  words  taken  down,  by 
calling  out  to  that  effect,  or  by  a  vote,  which 
the  assembly  may  doubtless  pass,  the  presid- 
ing officer  should  certainly  order  the  clerk  to 
take  them  down,  in  the  form  and  manner  in 
which  they  are  stated  by  the  member  who 
objects.* 

*  All  this  has  been  changed  by  the  modern  practice  of  steno- 
graphic reporting.— J.  J.I. 


128  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

229.  Offensive  Language  in  Debate 
if  Denied    by  Member  to    Be   Passed 
Upon  by  Assembly,— The  words  objected 
to   being  thus  written  down,  and  forming  a 
part  of  the  minutes  in  the  clerk's  book,  they 
are  next  to  be  read  to  the  member  who  was 
speaking,  who   may  deny  that  those  are  the 
words  which  he  spoke,  in   which  case,   the 
assembly  must  decide  by  a  question,  whethei 
they  are  the  words  or  not.*     If  he  does  not 
deny  that  he  spoke  those  words,  or  when  the 
assembly   has   itself   determined    what    the 
words   are,    then   the   member   may    either 
justify  them,  or  explain  the  sense  in  which 
he  used  them,  so  as  to  remove  the  objection 
of  their  being  disorderly;  or  he  may  make  an 
apology  for  them. 

230.  Offensive    Language :    Member 
May  Justify,    Explain,   or    Apologize 
for:  Further  Proceedings.— If  the  justi- 
fication, or  explanation,  or  apology,  of  the 
member,  is  thought  sufficient  by  the  assem- 
bly, no  further  proceeding  is  necessary;  the 
member   may  resume    and   go  on  with  his 
speech,  the  assembly  being  presumed,  unless 
some  further  motion  is  made,  to  be  satisfied; 


*  The  words,  as  written  down,  may  be  amended,  so  as  to 
conform  to  what  the  assembly  thinks  to  be  the  truth. 


OFFENSIVE   LANGUAGE.  129 

but,  if  any  two  members  (one  to  make  and 
the  other  to  second  the  motion)  think  it 
necessary  to  state  a  question,  so  as  to  take 
the  sense  of  the  assembly  upon  the  words, 
and  whether  the  member  in  using  them  has 
been  guilty  of  any  offense  toward  the  assem- 
bly, the  member  must  withdraw  before  that 
question  is  stated;  and  then  the  sense  of  the 
assembly  must  be  taken,  and  such  further 
proceedings  had  in  relation  to  punishing  the 
member,  as  may  be  thought  necessary  and 
proper. 

231.  Offensive  Language  Should  Be 
Written   Down  at  Once  :   Why.— The 
above  is  the  course  of  proceeding  established 
by  the   writers  of  greatest  authority,*  and 
ought  invariably   to   be   pursued;  it    might 
however  be  improved,  by  the    member  who 
objects  to  words  writing  them  down  at  once, 
and  thereupon  moving  that  they  be  made  a 
part  of  the  minutes;  by  which  means,  the 
presiding  officer  would  be  relieved  from  the 
responsibility  of  determining,  in  the  first  in- 
stance, upon  the  character  of  the  words. 

232.  Offensive  Language    Must    Be 
Noticed  at  Once. — If  offensive  words  are 

*  Mr.  Hatsell,  in  England,  and  Mr.  Jefferson,  tn  this  country 


130  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

not  taken  notice  of  at  the  time  they  are 
spoken,*  but  the  member  is  allowed  to  finish 
his  speech,  and  then  any  other  person  speaks, 
or  any  other  matter  of  business  intervenes, 
before  notice  is  taken  of  the  words  which 
gave  offense,  the  words  are  not  to  be  written 
down,  or  the  member  using  them  censured. 
This  rule  is  established  for  the  common 
security  of  all  the  members;  and  to  prevent 
the  mistakes  which  must  necessarily  happen, 
if  words  complained  of  are  not  immediately 
reduced  to  writing. 


*  Mr.  Jefferson  (§  17)  lays  it  down,  that  "  disorderly  words 
are  not  to  be  noticed  till  the  member  has  finished  his  speech." 
But  in  this,  he  is  contradicted  by  Hatsell,  as  well  as  by  the 
general  practice  of  legislative  bodies. 


FINAL  VOTE. 


CHAPTER  XTTT, 
OF  THE  QUESTION. 

233.  Motion,  Question,   Order,    etc.: 
Difference  Between. — When  any  proposi- 
tion is  made  to  a  deliberative  assembly,  it  is 
called  a  motion;  when  it  is  stated  or  pro- 
pounded to  the  assembly,  for  their  acceptance 
or  rejection,  it  is  denominated  a  question; 
and,  when   adopted,  it  becomes  the  order, 
resolution,  or  vote  of  the  assembly. 

234.  Proceedings  so  far  Considered: 
Object  of. — All  the  proceedings,  which  have 
thus  far  been  considered,  have  only  had  for 
their  object   to  bring  a  proposition  into  a 
form  to  be  put  to  the  question;  that  is,  to  be 
adopted  as  the  sense,  will,  or  judgment,  of 
the  assembly,  or  to  be  rejected;  according  as 
such  proposition  maybe  found  to  unite  in  its 
favor,  or  to  fail  of  uniting,  a  majority  of  the 
members. 

235.  Final    Vote:    When    Taken.— 
When  any  proposition,  whether  principal, 


132  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

subsidiary,  or  incidental,  or  of  whatever 
nature  it  may  be,  is  made,  seconded,  and 
stated,  if  no  alteration  is  proposed, — or  if  it 
admits  of  none,  or  if  it  is  amended, — and  the 
debate  upon  it,  if  any,  appears  to  be  brought 
to  a  close,  the  presiding  officer  then  inquires, 
whether  the  assembly  is  ready  for  the  ques- 
tion? and,  if  no  person  rises,  the  question  is 
then  stated,  and  the  votes  of  the  assembly 
taken  upon  it.  [^  335.] 

236.  Questions:    How    Stated.— The 
question  is  not  always  stated  to  the  assembly, 
in  the  precise  form  in  which  it  arises  or  is 
introduced;  thus,  for  example,  when  a  mem- 
ber presents  a  petition,  or  the  chairman  of  a- 
committee  offers  a  report,  the  question  which 
arises,  if   no   motion  is  made,  is,  Shall  the 
petition  or  the  report  ~be  received?  and,  so, 
when  the  previous  question  is  moved,*  it  is 
stated  in  this  form,  Shall  the  main  question 
be  now  put? — the    question    being    stated, 
in  all   cases,  in   the  form   in  which  it  will 
appear  on   the  journal,  if  it  passes  in  the 
affirmative. 

237.  In  Absence  of  Objection  Con- 
sent   Assumed    Informally  :    When. — 
In  matters  of  trifling  importance,  or  which 

*  Shall  the  previous  question  be  now  ordered. --J.  J.  I. 


FI^AL   QUESTION.  J3& 

are  generally  of  course,  such  as  receiving 
petitions  and  reports,  withdrawing  motions, 
reading  papers,  etc.,  the  presiding  officer 
most  commonly  supposes  or  takes  for  granted 
the  consent  of  the  assembly,  where  no  objec- 
tion is  expressed,  and  does  not  go  through 
the  formality  of  taking  the  question  by  a  vote. 
[T  313.]  But  if,  after  a  vote  has  been  taken 
in  this  informal  way  and  declared,  any  mem- 
ber rises  to  object,  the  presiding  officer 
should  consider  every  thing  that  has  passed 
as  nothing,  and,  at  once,  go  back  and  pursue 
the  regular  course  of  proceeding.  Thus,  if  a 
petition  is  received,  without  a  question,  and 
the  clerk  is  proceeding  to  read  it,  in  the 
usual  order  of  business,  if  any  one  rises  to 
object,  it  will  be  the  safest  and  most  proper 
course,  for  the  presiding  officer  to  require  a  \ 
motion  for  receiving  it  to  be  regularly  made 
and  seconded. 

238.  Final  Question  :  How  Put—- 
The question  being  stated  by  the  presiding, 
officer,  he  first  puts  it  in  the  affirmative,, 
namely:  As  many  as  are  of  opinion  that — 
repeating  the  words  of  the  question, f — say 
aye;  and,  immediately,  all  the  members  who 

t  **  Those  in  the  affirmative,  say  aye.  •*   *'  Those  in  the  nega,* 
tive,  say  no."— J.  J.  L 


134  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

are  of  that  opinion  answer  aye;  the  presiding 
officer  then  puts  the  question  negatively:  As 
many  as  are  of  a  different  opinion,  say  no; 
and,  thereupon,  all  the  members  who  are  of 
that  opinion  answer  no.  The  presiding 
officer  judges  by  his  ear  which  side  has  "  the 
more  voices,"  and  decides  accordingly,  that 
the  ayes  have  it,  or  the  noes  have  it,  as  the 
case  may  be.  If  the  presiding  officer  is 
doubtful  as  to  the  majority  of  voices,  he  may 
put  the  question  a  second  time,  and  if  he  is 
still  unable  to  decide,  or,  if,  having  decided 
according  to  his  judgment,  any  member 
rises  and  declares,  that  he  believes  the  ayes 
or  the  noes  (whichever  it  may  be)  have  it, 
contrary  to  the  declaration  of  the  presiding 
officer,*  then  the  presiding  officer  directs  the 
assembly  to  divide,  in  order  that  the  mem- 
bers on  the  one  side  and  the  other  may  be 
counted. 

239.  Division :  When  to  Be  De- 
manded.— If,  however,  any  new  motion 
should  be  made,  after  the  presiding  officer's 
declaration,  or,  if  a  member,  who  was  not  in 
the  assembly-room  when  the  question  was 
taken,  should  come  in,  it  will  then  be  too 

*The  most  common  expression  is:  "  I  doubt  the  vote,"  or, 
"  that  vote  is  doubted." 


DIVISION   BY   COUNT.  135 

late  to  contradict   the  presiding  officer,  and 
have  the  assembly  divided. 

240.  Vote  ;  By  Showing  of  Hands. — 
The   above   is   the    parliamentary   form    of 
taking  a  question,  and  is  in  general  use  in 
this  country;  but,  in  some  of  our  legislative 
assemblies,  and   especially   in   those   of   the 
New  England  states,  the  suffrages  are  given 
by   the    members    holding  up    their   right 
hands,  first,  those   in   the   affirmative,  and 
then  those  in  the  negative,  of  the  question. 
If  the  presiding  officer  cannot  determine,  by 
the  show  of  hands,   which  side  has  the  ma- 
jority, he  may  call  upon  the  members  to  vote 
again,  and  if  he  is  still  in  doubt,  or  if  his  dec- 
laration is  questioned,  a  division  takes  place. 
When  the  question  is  taken  in  this  manner, 
the  presiding  officer   directs   the  members, 
first  on  the  affirmative  side,  and  then  on  the 
negative,  to  manifest  their  opinion  by  hold- 
ing up  the  right  hand. 

241.  Division  by  Count. -—When  a  di- 
vision of  the  assembly  takes  place,  the  pre- 
siding officer  sometimes  directs  the  members 
to  range  themselves  on  different  sides  of  the 
assembly-room,  and  either  counts  them  him- 
self, or  they  are  counted  by  tellers  appointed 
by  him  for  the  purpose,  or  by  monitors  per- 


PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 


appointed  for  that  and  other  pur- 
poses; or  the  members  rise  in  their  seats, 
first  on  the  affirmative  and  then  on  the  nega- 
tive, and  (standing  uncovered)  are  counted 
in  the  same  manner.  When  the  members 
are  counted  by  the  presiding  officer,  he 
announces  the  numbers  and  declares  the 
result.  When  they  are  counted  by  tellers  or 
monitors,  the  tellers  must  first  agree  among 
themselves,  and  then  the  one  who  has  told 
for  the  majority  reports  the  numbers  to  the 
presiding  officer  who,  thereupon,  declares 
the  result. 

242.  Division  :  By  Tellers  the   Best 
Method.  —  The   best   mode   of   dividing  an 
assemblv,  that  is  at  all  numerous,  is  for  the 
presiding  officer  to  appoint  tellers  for  each 
division   or   section    of   the   assembly-room, 
and  then  to  require  the  members,  first  those 
in   the   affirmative,  and    then   those    in  the 
negative,  to   rise,  stand    uncovered,  and   be 
counted;  this  being  done,  on  each  side,  the 
tellers  of   the  several  divisions  make  their 
returns,  and    the    presiding   officer   declares 
the  result. 

243.  Presiding  Officer  :    Right   of   to 
Vote  in  Case  of  Tie.—  If  the  members  are 
equally  divided,  the  presiding  officer  may,  if 


VOTE   BY    YEAS    AND   NAYS.  13? 

he  pleases,  give  the  casting  vote;*  or,  if  he 
chooses,  he  may  refrain  from  voting,  in  which 
case,  the  motion  does  not  prevail,  and  the 
decision  is  in  the  negative. 

244.  Member  Not  in    Room    When 
Question   Stated  Cannot  Vote.— It  is  a 
general  rule,  that  every  member,  who  is  in 
the   assembly-room,  at   the    time   when  the 
question  is  stated,  has  not  only  the  right  but 
is  bound  to  vote;  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
that  no  member  can  vote  who  was  not  in  the 
room  at  that  time. 

245.  Vote  by  Yeas  and  Nays  :  How 
Taken. — The  only  other  form  of  taking  the 
question,  which  requires  to  be  described,  is 
one  in  general  use  in  this  country,  by  means 
of  which  the  names  of  the  members  voting 
on  the  one  side  and  on  the  other  are   ascer- 
tained  and   entered   in   the  journal  of  the 
assembly.     This  mode,  which   is  peculiar  to 
the  legislative  bodies  of  the  United  States,  is 
called  taking  the  question  by  yeas  and  nays. 
In  order  to  take  a  question  in  this  manner, 
it  is  stated  on  both  sides  at  once,  namely: 
As  many  as  are  of  opinion,  that,  etc.,  will, 
when  their  names  are  called,  answer  yes;  and, 
As  many  as  are  of  a  different  opinion  will, 

*  [See  1  336,  for  Explanation  of  t  243.] 


138  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

when  their  names  are  called,  answer  no;  the 
roll  of  the  assembly  is  then  called  over  by 
the  clerk,  and  each  member,  as  his  name  is 
called,  rises  in  his  place,  and  answers  yes  or 
no,  and  the  clerk  notes  the  answer  as  the 
roll  is  called.  When  the  roll  has  been  gone 
through,  the  clerk  reads  over  first  the  names 
of  those  who  have  answered  in  the  affirm- 
ative, and  then  the  names  of  those  who  have 
answered  in  the  negative,  in  order  that  if  he 
has  made  any  mistake  in  noting  the  answer, 
or  if  any  member  has  made  a  mistake  in  his 
answer,  the  mistake  of  either  may  be  cor- 
rected. The  names  having  been  thus  read 
over,  and  the  mistakes,  if  any,  corrected,  the 
clerk  counts  the  numbers  on  each  side,  and 
reports  them  to  the  presiding  officer,  who 
declares  the  result  to  the  assembly. 

246.  Vote  by  Yeas  and  Nays  :  How 
Taken  in  Massachusetts.— The  following 
is  the  mode  practiced  in  the  house  of  represen- 
tatives of  Massachusetts  (which  is  by  far  the 
most  numerous  of  all  the  legislative  bodies 
in  this  country),  of  taking  a  question  by 
yeas  and  nays.  The  names  of  the  members 
being  printed  on  a  sheet,  the  clerk  calls  them 
in  their  order;  and,  as  each  one  answers,  the 
clerk  (responding  to  the  member,  at  the  same 


RIGHT   OF   DEBATE   CONTINUES.        139 

time)  places  a  figure  in  pencil,  expressing 
the  number  of  the  answer,  at  the  left  or  right 
of  the  name,  according  as  the  answer  is  yes 
or  no;  so  that  the  last  figure  or  number,  on 
each  side,  shows  the  number  of  the  answers 
on  that  side;  and  the  two  last  numbers  or 
figures  represent  the  respective  numbers  of 
the  affirmatives  and  negatives  on  the  division. 
Thus,  at  the  left  hand  of  the  name  of  the 
member  who  first  answers  yes,  the  clerk 
places  a  figure  1;  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
first  member  who  answers  no,  he  also  places 
a  figure  1;  the  second  member  that  answers 
yes  is  marked  2;  and  so  on  to  the  end  of  the 
list;  the  side  of  the  name,  on  which  the 
figure  is  placed,  denoting  whether  the  an- 
swer is  yes  or  no,  and  the  figure  denoting  the 
number  of  the  answer  on  that  side.  The 
affirmatives  and  negatives  are  then  read 
separately,  if  necessary,  though  this  is  usually 
omitted,  and  the  clerk  is  then  prepared,  by 
means  of  the  last  figure  on  each  side,  to  give 
the  numbers  to  the  speaker  to  be  announced 
to  the  house.  The  names  and  answers  are 
afterward  recorded  on  the  journal. 

247.  Right  of  Debate  Continues  Till 
Question  Has  Been  Put  on  Both 
Sides. — In  any  of  the  modes  of  taking  a 


140  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

question,  in  which  it  is  first  put  on  one  side, 
and  then  on  the  other,  it  is  no  full  question, 
until  the  negative  as  well  as  the  affirmative 
has  been  put.  Consequently,  until  the  nega- 
tive has  been  put,  it  is  in  order  for  any  mem- 
ber, in  the  same  manner  as  if  the  division 
had  not  commenced,  to  rise  and  speak,  make 
motions  for  amendment,  or  otherwise,  and 
thus  renew  the  debate;  and,  this,  whether 
such  member  was  in  the  assembly-room  or 
not,  when  the  question  was  put  and  partly 
taken.  In  such  a  case,  the  question  must  be 
put  over  again  on  the  affirmative,  as  well  as 
the  negative  side;  for  the  reason,  that  mem- 
bers who  were  not  in  the  assembly-room, 
when  the  question  was  first  put,  may  have 
since  come  in,  and  also  that  some  of  those 
who  voted  may  have  since  changed  their 
minds.  When  a  question  is  taken  by  yeas 
and  nays,  and  the  negative  as  well  as  the 
affirmative  of  the  question  is  stated,  and  the 
voting  on  each  side  begins  and  proceeds,  at 
the  same  time,  the  question  cannot  be  opened 
and  the  debate  renewed  after  the  voting  has 
commenced. 

248.  Questions  Arising  During  Divi- 
vision  to  Be  Decided  Summarily. — If 
any  question  arises,  in  a  point  of  order,  as, 


NO    DECISION.  141 

for  example,  as  to  the  right  or  the  duty  of  a 
member  to  vote,  during  a  division,  the  pre- 
siding officer  must  decide  it  peremptorily, 
subject  to  the  revision  and  correction  of  the 
assembly,  after  the  division  is  over.  In  a 
case  of  this  kind,  there  can  be  no  debate, 
though  the  presiding  officer  may  if  he  pleases 
receive  the  assistance  of  members  with  their 
advice,  which  they  are  to  give  sitting,  in  order 
to  avoid  even  the  appearance  of  a  debate; 
but  this  can  only  be  with  the  leave  of  the 
presiding  officer,  as  otherwise  the  division 
might  be  prolonged  to  an  inconvenient  length; 
nor  can  any  question  be  taken,  for  otherwise 
there  might  be  division  upon  division  with- 
out end. 

249.  No  Decision  Unless  Quorum 
Present. — When,  from  counting  the  as- 
sembly on  a  division,  it  appears  that  there 
is  not  a  quorum  present,  there  is  no  deci- 
sion; but  the  matter  in  question  continues 
in  the  same  state  in  which  it  was  before 
the  division;  and,  when  afterward  resumed, 
whether  on  the  same  or  on  some  future 
day,  it  must  be  taken  up  at  that  precise 
point. 


PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

OF  RECONSIDERATION. 

250.  Generally  Decision  Final.— It  is 

a  principle  of  parliamentary  law,  upon  which 
many  of  the  rules  and  proceedings  previously 
stated  are  founded,  that  when  a  question 
has  been  once  put  to  a  deliberative  assembly, 
and  decided,  whether  in  the  affirmative  or 
negative,  that  decision  is  the  judgment  of  the 
assembly,  and  cannot  be  again  brought  into 
question. 

251.  Alternative      and      Equivalent 
Questions  :  Decision  Final. — This   prin- 
ciple  holds  equally,  although  the  question 
proposed  is  not  the  identical  question  which 
has  already  been  decided,  but  only  its  equiv- 
alent; as,  for  example,  where  the  negative  of 
one  question  amounts  to  the  affirmative  of 
the  other,  and  leaves  no  other  alternative, 
these  questions  are   the   equivalents  of  one 
another,  and  a  decision  of  ttn  one  necessarily 
concludes  the  other. 


KECOKSIDERATIOST. 

252.  Illustration. — A  common   applica- 
tion of   the  rule  as  to  equivalent  questions 
occurs  in  the  case  of  an  amendment  proposed 
by  striking   out  words;  in  which  it   is   the 
invariable  practice   to  consider  the  negative 
of  striking  out  as  equivalent  to  the  affirmative 
of   agreeing;  so   that   to  put  a  question  on 
agreeing,  after  a  question  on  striking  out  is 
negatived,  would   be,  in   effect,  to   put   the 
same  question  twice  over. 

253.  Same  Questions    May   Be   Re- 
peated    at     Different     Parliamentary 
Stages. — The  principle  above  stated   does 
not  apply  so  as  to  prevent  putting  the  same 
question  in  the  different  stages  of  any  pro- 
ceeding, as,  for  example,  in  legislative  bodies, 
the  different  stages  of  a  bill;  so,  in  consider- 
ing reports  of  committees,  questions  already 
taken  and  decided,  before  the  subject  was 
referred,  may  be  again  proposed;  and,  in  like 
manner,  orders  of  the  assembly,  and  instruc- 
tions or  references  to   committees,  may   be 
discharged  or  rescinded. 

254.  Reconsideration  :  Reason  for. — 
The  inconvenience  of  this  rule,  which  is  still 
maintained  in  all  its  strictness  in  the  British 
parliament   (though   divers    expedients    are 
there   resorted    to,    to   counteract   or  evade 


144  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

it),  has  led  to  the  introduction  into  the  parlia- 
mentary pi-actice  of  this  country  of  the  mo- 
tion for  reconsideration;  which,  while  it 
recognizes  and  upholds  the  rule  in  all  its  an- 
cient strictness,  yet  allows  a  deliberative 
assembly,  for  sufficient  reasons,  to  relieve 
itself  from  the  embarrassment  and  incon- 
venience, which  would  occasionally  result 
from  a  strict  enforcement  of  the  rule  in  a 
particular  case. 

255.  Reconsideration  :  The  Common 
Practice. — It  has  now  come  to  be  a  com- 
mon practice  in  all  our  deliberative  assem- 
blies, and  may  consequently  be  considered  as 
a  principle  of   the   common   parliamentary 
law   of   this   country,  to   reconsider  a   vote 
already     passed,    whether    affirmatively     or 
negatively. 

256.  Reconsideration  :  Form  and  Re- 
sults of. — For  this  purpose,  a  motion  is  made 
and  seconded,  in  the  usual  manner,  that  such 
a  vote  be  reconsidered;  and,  if  this  motion 
prevails,  the  matter  stands  before  the  assem- 
bly in  precisely  the  same  state  and  condi- 
tion, and  the  same  questions  are  to  be  put  in 
relation   to   it,  as  if   the  vote    reconsidered 
had  never  been  passed.     Thus,  if  an  amend- 
ment by  inserting  words  is  moved  and  re- 


RECONSIDERATION.  145 

jected,  the  same  amendment  cannot  be 
moved  aga%in;  but,  the  assembly  may  recon- 
sider the  vote  by  which  it  was  rejected,  and 
then  the  question  will  recur  on  the  amend- 
ment, precisely  as  if  the  former  vote  had 
never  been  passed . 

257.  Reconsideration  :  When  to  Be 
Moved. — It  is  usual  in  legislative  bodies,  to 
regulate  by  a  special  rule  the  time,  manner, 
and  by  whom,  a  motion  to  reconsider  may  be 
made;  thus,  for  example,  that  it  shall  be 
made  only  on  the  same  or  a  succeeding  day, 
— by  a  member  who  voted  with  the  majority, 
— or  at  a  time  when  there  are  as  many  mem- 
bers present  as  there  were  when  the  vote  was 
passed;  but,  where  there  is  no  special  rule 
on  the  subject,  a  motion  to  reconsider  must 
be  considered  in  the  same  light  as  any  other 
motion,  and  as  subject  to  no  other  rules. 

[T  337.] 


146  PARLIAMEOTAKY   PRACTICE. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

OF    COMMITTEES. 

SEC.  I.    THEIR  NATURE  AND 

FUNCTIONS. 

258.  Committees:    How    Composed 
and  Appointed.— It  is  usual  in  all  deliber- 
ative  assemblies,    to   take  the    preliminary 
(sometimes,  also,  the  intermediate)  measures, 
and    to  prepare  matters  to  be  acted  upon, 
in  the  assembly,  by  means  of   committees, 
composed     either     of     members     specially 
selected  for  the  particular  occasion,  or   ap- 
pointed  beforehand  for   all  matters  of  the 
same  nature. 

259.  Committees :  How  Designated. 
— Committees  of  the  first  kind  are  usually 
called  select)  the  others  standing,  though  the 
former  appellation  belongs  with  equal  pro- 
priety to  both,  in  order  to  distinguish  them 
from  another  form  of  committee,  constituted 
either    for    a    particular    occasion,    or    for 
all  cases  of  a  certain  kind,  which  is  com- 


COMMITTEES.  147 

posed  of  all  the  members  of  the  assembly, 
aiid  therefore  denominated  a  committee  of  the 
whole. 

260.  Committees  :   Advantages  of.— 
The  advantages  of  proceeding  in  this  mode 
are  manifold.    It  enables  a  deliberative  assem- 
bly to  do  many  things,  which,  from  its  num- 
bers, it  would  otherwise  be  unable  to  do; — to 
accomplish  a  much  greater  quantity  of  busi- 
ness, by  dividing  it  among  the  members,  than 
could  possibly  be  accomplished,  if  the  whole 
body  were   obliged  to  devote  itself  to  each 
particular  subject; — and  to  act  in  the  pre- 
liminary and  preparatory  steps,  with  a  greater 
degree  of  freedom,  than  is  compatible  with 
the  forms  of  proceeding  usually  observed  in 
full  assembly. 

261.  Committees  :    Why  Appointed. 
— Committees   are   appointed  to  consider  a 
particular  subject,  either  at  large  or  under 
special  instructions;    to  obtain  information 
in  reference  to  a  matter  before  the  assembly, 
either  by  personal  inquiry  and    inspection, 
or  by   the   examination   of   witnesses;    and 
to  digest  and  put  into  the  proper  form,  for 
the  adoption  of  the  assembly,  all  resolutions, 
votes,  orders,  and  other  papers,  with  which 
they    may   be    charged.      Committees     are 


148  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

commonly  said  to  be  the  "  eyes  and  ears " 
of  the  assembly;  it  is  equally  true,  that,  for 
certain  purposes,  they  are  also  its  "head  and 
hands.*1 

262.  Committees  :  Functions  of. — The 
powers  and  functions  of  committees  depend 
chiefly  upon    the  general  authority  and  par- 
ticular instructions  given  them   by  the  as- 
sembly, at  the  time  of   their  appointment, 
but  they  may  also  be,  and   very  often  are, 
further   instructed,   while   they   are   in   the 
exercise  of  their  functions;  and,  sometimes, 
it   even    happens,  that    these  additional  in- 
structions  wholly   change  the  nature   of   a 
committee,    by   charging   it   with   inquiries 
quite  different  from  those  for  which  it  was 
originally  established. 

SEC.  II.    THEIR  APPOINTMENT. 

263.  Committees,  Standing  and  Se- 
lect :  Mode   of  Selection.— In   the  man- 
ner of  appointing  committees,  there  is   no 
difference  between  standing  and  other  select 
committees,  as  to  the  mode  of  selecting  the 
members  to  compose  them;  and,  in  reference 
to  committees  of  the  whole,  as  there  is  no 
selection   of   members,   they   are   appointed 
simply  by  the  order  of  the  assembly. 


COMMITTEES.  K 

1 

264.  Appointment     of    Committees : 
Order  in. — In   the   appointment   of   select 
committees,  the  first  thing  to  be  done  is  to 
fix     upon  '  the    number.     This    is    usually 
effected   in   the   same   manner    that  blanks  \ 
are  filled,  namely,   by  members   proposing,  l 
without   the   formality   of   a   motion,    such 
numbers  as   they   please,    which    are    then 
separately  put   to   the   question,  beginning 
with  the  largest  and  going  regularly  through 
to  the  smallest,  until  the  assembly  comes  to 
a  vote. 

265.  Committees  :   Membership    of : 
How     Selected.  —  The    number      being 
settled,  there  are  three  modes  of  selecting 
the  members,  to  wit,  by  the  appointment  of 
the   presiding  officer, — by   ballot, — and    by 
nomination   and  vote  of   the  assembly;  the 
first,    sometimes  in   virtue    of    a    standing 
rule,  sometimes  in  pursuance  of  a  vote  of 
the    assembly    in    a    particular    case;    the 
second  always  in  pursuance  of  a  vote;  the 
last  is    the   usual  course  where  no  vote  is 
taken. 

266.  Committees  :  Usually  Named  by 
Presiding  Officer. — In  deliberative  assem- 
blies,   whose    sittings    are    of    considerable 
length,  as  legislative  bodies,  it  is  usual   to> 


PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

by  a  standing  rule,  that,  unless 
ise  ordered  in  a  particular  case,  all 
v,v___  ttees  shall  be  named  by  the  presiding 
officer.  Where  this  is  the  case,  whenever  a 
committee  is  ordered,  and  the  number 
settled,  the  presiding  officer  at  once  names 
the  members  to  compose  it.  Sometimes, 
also,  the  rule  fixes  the  number,  of  which, 
unless  otherwise  ordered,  committees  shall 
consist.  This  mode  of  appointing  a  com- 
mittee is  frequently  resorted  to,  where  there 
is  no  rule  on  the  subject. 

267.  Selection  by  Ballot :  Order  in.— 
When  a  committee  is  ordered  to  be  appointed 
by  ballot,  the  members  are   chosen  by  the 
assembly,   either   singly   or   all   together,  as 
may  be  ordered,  in  the  same  manner  that 
other    elections    are    made;     and,    in    such 
elections,  as  in  other  cases  of  the  election 
of  the  officers  of  the  assembly,  a  majority 
of   all  the  votes  given  in  is  necessary  to  a 
choice. 

268.  Selection    of    Committees     by 
Vote  :  Order  in. — When   a  committee  is 
directed  to  be  appointed  by  nomination  and 
vote,  the  names  of  the   members  proposed 
are  put  to  the  question  singly,  and  approved 
or  rejected  by  the  assembly,  by  a  vote  taken 


COMMITTEES   MAY   BE   REVIYEIX         151 

in  the  usual  manner.  If  the  nomination  is 
directed  to  be  made  by  the  presiding  officer, 
he  may  propose  the  names  in  the  same  man- 
ner, or  all  at  once;  the  former  mode  being 
the  most  direct  and  simple;  the  latter  enabling 
the  assembly  to  vote  more  understandingly 
upon  the  several  names  proposed.  When 
the  nomination  is  directed  to  be  made  at 
large,  the  presiding  officer  calls  upon  the  as- 
sembly to  nominate,  and  names  being  men- 
tioned accordingly,  he  puts  to  vote  the  first 
name  he  hears. 

269.  Committees   May  Be  Revived  : 
When. — It  is  also  a  compendious  mode  of 
appointing  a  committee,  to  revive  one  which 
has  already  discharged  itself  by  a  report;  or 
by  charging  a  committee  appointed  for  one 
purpose  with  some  additional  duty,  of  the 
same  or  a  different  character. 

270.  Bill     Should    Be    Referred    to 
Friendly  Committee  :  Why. — In  regard 
to  the  appointment  of  committees,  so  far  as 
the  selection  of  the  members  is  concerned,  it 
is  a  general  rule  in  legislative  bodies,  when 
a  bill  is  to  be  referred,  that  none  who  speak 
directly  against  the  body  of  it  are  to  be  of 
the  committee,  for  the  reason,  that  he  who 
would  totally  destroy  will  not  amend;  but, 


152  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

that,  for  the  opposite  reason,  those  who  only 
take  exceptions  to  some  particulars  in  the  bill 
are  to  be  of  the  committee.  This  rule  sup- 
poses the  purpose  of  the  commitment  to  be, 
not  the  consideration  of  the  general  merits 
of  the  bill,  but  the  amendment  of  it  in  its 
particular  provisions,  so  as  to  make  it  accept- 
able to  the  assembly. 

271.  Majority  Should  Be  Favorable 
to   Measure. — This  rule,  of  course,  is  only 
for  the  guidance  of  the  presiding  officer,  and 
the  members,  in  the    exercise   of  their  dis- 
cretion; as  the  assembly  may  refuse  to  ex- 
cuse from  serving,  or  may  itself  appoint,  on 
a  committee,  persons  who  are  opposed  to  the 
subject  referred.     It  is  customary,  however, 
in  all  deliberative  assemblies,  to   constitute 
a  committee   of   such  persons     (the   mover 
and  seconder  of  a  measure  being  of  course 
appointed),    a  majority  of  whom,  at  least, 
are  favorably  inclined  to  the  measure  pro- 
posed. 

272.  Committees :    How  Notified  of 
Appointment  and*  Reference. — When  a 
committee  has  been  appointed,  in  reference 
to  a  particular  subject,  it  is  the  duty  of  the 
secretary  of  the  assembly  to  make  out  a  list 
of   the    members,  together  with  a   certified 


TIME   AKD   PLACE   OF    MEETING.        153 

copy  of  the  authority  or  instructions  under 
which  they  are  to  act,  and  to  give  the  papers 
to  the  member  first  named  on  the  list  of  the 
committee,  if  convenient,  but,  otherwise,  to 
any  other  member  of  the  committee. 

SEC.  III.    THEIR  ORGANIZA- 
TION  AND  MANNER  OF 
PROCEEDING. 

273.  Person    First    Named   Usually 
Chairman :   But  by  Courtesy,  Not  by 
Right. — The  person   first  named  on  a  com- 
mittee acts   as  its  chairman,   or  presiding 
officer,  so  far  as  relates  to  the  preliminary 
steps  to  be  taken,  and  is  usually  permitted 
to  do  so,  through  the  whole  proceedings;  but 
this  is  a  matter  of  courtesy;  every  committee 
having  aright  to  elect  its  own  chairman,  who 
presides  over  it,  and  makes  the  report  of  its 
proceedings  to  the  assembly. 

274.  Time  and    Place    of  Meeting: 
How  Fixed. — A  committee  is  properly  to 
receive  directions  from  the  assembly,  as  to 
the  time  and  place  of  its  meeting,  and  can- 
not regularly  sit  at  any  other  time  or  place; 
and   it  may  be  ordered  to  sit  immediately, 
while  the  assembly  is  sitting,  and  make  its 
report  forthwith. 


154  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

275.  Committee  Cannot    Sit  When 
Body  is  in  Session  Without  Leave. — 

When  no  directions  are  given,  a  committee 
may  select  its  own  time  and  place  of  meeting; 
but,  without  a  special  order  to  that  effect,  it 
is  not  at  liberty  to  sit  while  the  assembly 
sits;  and,  if  a  committee  is  sitting,  when  the 
assembly  comes  to  order  after  an  adjourn- 
ment, it  is  the  duty  of  the  chairman  to  rise, 
instantly,  on  being  certified  of  it,  and,  with 
the  other  members,  to  attend  the  service  of 
the  assembly. 

276.  Committee  :    Proceedings.  —  In 
regard  to  its  forms  of  proceeding,  a  commit- 
tee is  essentially  a  miniature  assembly; — it 
can     only   act    when    regularly     assembled 
together,  as  a  committee,  and  not  by  separate 
consultation  and  consent  of  the  members; 
nothing  being  the  agreement  or  report  of  a 
committee,  but   what  is  agreed  to  in  that 
manner; — a  vote  taken  in  committee  is  as 
binding    as    a    vote    of    the     assembly; — a 
majority  of  the  members  is  necessary  to  con- 
stitute a  quorum  for  business,  unless  a  larger 
or   smaller  number  has  been  fixed  by  the  as- 
sembly itself, — and  a    committee   has    full 
power  over  whatever  may  be  committed  to  it, 


DISORDER  IN   COMMITTEE.  155 

except  sthat  it  is  not  at  liberty  to  change  the 
title  or  subject.* 

277.  Power  of  Committee  as  to  Time 
and   Place    of  Meeting. — A  committee, 
which  is  under  no  directions  as  to  the  time 
and  place  of  meeting,  may  meet  when  and 
where  it  pleases,  and  adjourn  itself  from  day 
to  day,  or  otherwise,  until  it  has  gone  through 
with  the  business  committed  to  it;  but,  if  it 
is  ordered  to  meet  at  a  particular  time,  and 
it  fails  of  doing  so,  for  any  cause,  the  com- 
mittee is  closed,   and  cannot  act  without 
being  newly  directed  to  sit. 

278.  Disorder   in  Committee:    How 
Treated. — Disorderly   words  spoken  in   a 
committee  must  be  written  down  in  the  same 
manner  as  in  the  assembly;  but  the  commit- 
tee, as  such,  can  do  nothing  more  than  report 
them  to  the  assembly  for  its  animadversion; 
neither  can  a  committee  punish  disorderly 
conduct  of  any  other  kind,  but  must  report 
it  to  the  assembly. 

279.  Proceedings     in    Committee. — 
When   any    paper   is    before   a   committee, 
whether  select  or  of  the  whole,  it  may  either 
have  originated  with  the  committee,  or  have 
been  referred  to  them;  and,  in  either  case, 

*[1  338.] 


156  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

when  the  paper  comes  to  be  considered,  the 
course  is  for  it  to  be  first  read  entirely 
through,  by  the  clerk  of  the  committee,  if 
there  is  one,  otherwise  by  the  chairman;  and 
then  to  be  read  through  again  by  paragraphs, 
by  the  chairman,  pausing  at  the  end  of  each 
paragraph,  and  putting  questions  for  amend- 
ing, either  by  striking  out  or  inserting,  if 
proposed.  This  is  the  natural  order  of  pro- 
ceeding in  considering  and  amending  any 
paper,  and  is  to  be  strictly  adhered  to  in  the 
assembly;  but  the  same  strictness  does  not 
seem  necessary  in  a  committee. 

280.  Original  Paper  in  Committee  : 
How  Treated. — If  the  paper  before  a  com- 
mittee is  one  which  has  originated  with  the 
committee,   questions   are   put    on    amend- 

,  ments  proposed,  but  not  on  agreeing  to  the 
several  paragraphs  of  which  it  is  composed, 
separately,  as  they  are  gone  through  with; 
this  being  reserved  for  the  close,  when 
a  question  is  to  be  put  on  the  whole,  for 
agreeing  to  the  paper,  as  amended,  or  un- 
amended. 

281.  Referred  Papers  :  How  Treated. 
— If  the  paper  be  one,  which  has  been  referred 
to   the   committee,  they  proceed   as  in   the 
other  case  to  put  questions  of  amendment,  if 


REFERRED   PAPERS.  lo? 

proposed,  but  no  final  question  on  the  whole; 
because  all  parts  of  the  paper,  having  been 
passed  upon  if  not  adopted  by  the  assembly 
as  the  basis  of  its  action,  stand,  of  course, 
unless  altered  or  struck  out  by  a  vote  of  the 
assembly.  And  even  if  the  committee  are 
opposed  to  the  whole  paper,  and  are  of 
opinion,  that  it  cannot  be  made  good  by 
amendments,  they  have  no  authority  to 
reject  it;  they  must  report  it  back  to  the 
assembly,  without  amendments  (specially 
stating  their  objections,  if  they  think  proper), 
and  there  make  their  opposition  as  individual 
members.* 

282.  Original    Paper :    How    to    Be 
Reported. — In  the  case  of  a  paper  originat- 
ing  with  a  committee,  they  may  erase  or  in- 
terline it  as  much  as  they  please;  though, 
when  finally  agreed  to,  it  ought  to  be  reported 
in   a    clear    draft,    fairly    written,    without 
erasure  or  interlineation. 

283.  Referred  Papers  :    How  to  Be 
Treated. — But,   in   the  case    of    a  paper 
referred   to  a  committee,  they  are   not  at 
liberty  to  erase,  interline,  blot,  disfigure,  or 

*  This  rule  is  not  applicable,  of  course,  to  those  cases  in 
which  the  subject,  as  well  as  the /arm  or  details  of  a  paper, 
is  referred  to  the  committee. 


158  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

tear  it,  in  any  manner;  but  they  must,  in  a 
separate  paper,  set  down  the  amendments 
they  have  agreed  to  report,  stating  the  words 
which  are  to  be  inserted  or  omitted,  and  the 
places  where  the  amendments  are  to  be  made, 
by  references  to  the  paragraph  or  section, 
line,  and  word. 

284.  Amendments     in     Committee : 
How    Reported.  —  If     the    amendments 
agreed  to  are  very  numerous  and  minute,  the 
committee   may  report  them  altogether,  in 
the  form  of  a  new  and  amended  draft. 

285.  Subject  Concluded  in   Commit- 
tee :  How  Treated. — When  a  committee 
has    gone    through   the    paper,    or    agreed 
upon  a  report  on   the  subject,   which   has 
been  referred   to   them,    it  is   then   moved 
by  some  member,  and  thereupon  voted,  that 
the  committee  rise,  and  that  the  chairman, 
or  some  other  member,  make  their  report  tf 
the  assembly, 

SEC.  IV.    THEIR    REPORT. 

286.  Reports  of  Committees  :    How 
Treated  in  House. — When  the  report  of  a 
committee  is  to  be  made,  the  chairman,  or 
member    appointed    to    make    the   report, 
standing  in  his  place,  informs  the  assembly, 


AMENDMENTS.  159 

that  the  committee,  to  whom  was  referred 
such  a  subject  or  paper,  have,  according  to 
order,  had  the  same  under  consideration,  and 
have  directed  him  to  make  a  report  thereon, 
or  to  report  the  same  with  sundry  amend- 
ments, or  without  amendment  as  the  case 
may  be,  which  he  is  ready  to  do  when  the 
assembly  shall  please;  and  he  or  any  other 
member  may  then  move  that  the  report  be 
now  received.  On  this  motion  being  made, 
the  question  is  put  whether  the  assembly  will 
receive  the  report  at  that  time;  and  a  vote 
passes,  accordingly,  either  to  receive  it  then, 
or  fixing  upon  some  future  time  for  its  recep- 
tion, [f  339.] 

287.  Reports  of  Committees  :  Order 
in. — At  the  time,  when,  by  the  order  of  the 
assembly,  the  report  is  to  be  received,  the 
chairman  reads  it  in  his  place,  and  then  de- 
livers it,  together  with  all  the  papers   con- 
nected  with   it,  to   the   clerk  at  the  table; 
where  it  is  again  read,  and  then  lies  on  the 
table,  until  the  time  assigned,  or  until  it  suits 
the  convenience  of  the  assembly,  to  take  it 
up  for  consideration. 

288.  Amendments  :   How  Reported. 
— If  the  report  of  the  committee  is   of  a 
paper     with     amendments,    the     chairman 


160  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

reads  the  amendments  with  the  coherence 
in  the  paper,  whatever  it  may  be,  and 
opens  the  alterations,  and  the  reasons  of 
the  committee  for  the  amendments,  until 
he  has  gone  through  the  whole;  and,  when 
the  report  is  read  at  the  clerk's  table,  the 
amendments  only  are  read  without  the 
coherence. 

289.  Report  Generally  Received  as  of 
Course,  Without  Motion.— In  practice, 
however,  the  formality  of  a  motion  and  vote 
on  the  reception  of  a  report  is  usually  dis- 
pensed with;    though,    if   any   objection   is 
made,  or  if  the  presiding  officer  sees  any  in- 
formality in  the  report,  he  should   decline 
receiving  ifc  without  a  motion  and  vote;  and 
a  report,  if   of  any   considerable   length,  is 
seldom  read,  either  by  the  chairman  in  his 
place,  or  by  the  clerk   at   the   table,  until 
it  is  taken  up  for  consideration.     In  legis- 
lative  assemblies,    the   printing   of   reports 
generally  renders  the  reading  of  them  un- 
necessary. 

290.  Committee  Having  Reported  is 
Functus  Officio,  But  May  be  Revived 
or  Ordered  to  Sit  Again.— The  report  of 
a  committee  being  made  and  received,  the 
committee  is  dissolved,  and  can  act  no  more 


BEPORTS   OF   COMMITTEES.  161 

without  a  new  power;  but  their  authority 
may  be  revived  by  a  vote,  and  the  same  mat- 
ter recommitted  to  them.  If  a  report,  when 
offered  to  the  assembly,  is  not  received,  the 
committee  is  not  thereby  discharged,  but 
may  be  ordered  to  sit  again,  and  a  time  and 
place  appointed  accordingly. 

291.  Report   May  Be  Recommitted  : 
Invalid    Unless    Agreed    to. — When    a 
subject  or  paper  has  been  once  committed, 
and  a  report  made  upon  it,  it  may  be  recom- 
mitted either  to  the  same  or  a  different  com- 
mittee;   and   if  a    report  is    recommitted, 
before  it  has  been  agreed  to  by  the  assembly, 
what  has  heretofore  passed  in  the  committee 
is  of  no  validity;  the  whole  question  being 
again  before  the  committee,  as  if   nothing 
had  passed  there  in  relation  to  it. 

292.  Reports  of  Committees  :  Forms 
of. — The  report  of  a  committee  may  be  made 
in  three  different   forms,   namely:  first,   it 
may    contain  merely  a   statement  of   facts, 
reasoning,  or  opinion,  in  relation  to  the  sub- 
ject of  it,  without  any  specific  conclusion; 
or,  second,  a  statement  of  facts,  reasoning, 
or  opinion,  concluding  with  a  resolution,  or 
series  of  resolutions,  or  some  other  specific 
proposition;  or,  third,  it  may  consist  merely 


162  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

of  such  resolutions,  or  propositions,  without 
any  introductory  part. 

293.  Reports  of  Committees  :  Ques- 
tion on  Receiving  and  Effect  of.— The 
first  question,  on  a  report,  is,  in  strictness, 
on  receiving  it;  though,  in  practice,  the  ques- 
tion is  seldom  or  never  made;  the  consent  of 
the   assembly,  especially   in   respect   to   the 
report  of  a  committee  of  the  whole,  being 
generally  presumed,  unless  objection  is  made. 
When   a    report    is    received,    whether    by 
general  consent,  or  upon  a  question  and  vote, 
the  committee  is  discharged,  and  the  report 
becomes  the  basis  of  the  future  proceedings 
of  the  assembly,  on  the  subject  to  which  it 
relates . 

294.  Reports  of  Committees  :  Treat- 
ed Like  Other  Questions. — At  the  time 
assigned  for  the  consideration  of  a  report, 
it  may  be  treated  and  disposed  of  precisely 
like  any  other  proposition   (59  to  77);  and 
may  be  amended,  in  the  same  manner  (78 
to  133),  both   in  the  preliminary  statement, 
reasoning,  or  opinion,  if  it  contain  any,  and 
in  the  resolutions,  or  other  propositions  with 
which  it  concludes;  so  if  it  consist  merely 
of  a  statement,  etc.,  without  resolutions  or 


REPORT.  163 

of  resolutions,  etc.,  without  any  introductory 
part. 

295.  Report :     Final    Question     on. 
Adoption  :  Effect  of. — The  final  question 
on  a  report,  whatever  form  it  may  have,  is 
usually  stated  on  its  acceptance;  and,  when 
accepted,  the  whole  report  is  adopted  by  the 
assembly,  and  becomes  the  statement,  reason- 
ing, opinion,  resolution,  or  other  act,  as  the 
case  may  be,  of  the  assembly;  the  doings  of 
a  committee,  when  agreed  to,   adopted,   or 
accepted,  becoming  the  acts  of  the  assembly, 
in  the  same  manner  as  if  done  originally  by 
the  assembly  itself,  without  the  intervention 
of  a  committee. 

296.  Report :     Proper    Question    on 
Agreement  or  Acceptance. — It  would  be 
better,  however,  and   in  stricter  accordance 
with  parliamentary  rules,  to  state  the  final 
question  on  a  report,  according  to  the  form 
of  it.     If  the  report  contain  merely  a  state- 
ment  of   facts,   reasoning,   or   opinion,   the 
question  should  be  on  acceptance;  if  it  also 
conclude  with  resolutions,  or  other  specific 
propositions,  of  any  kind, — the  introductory 
part  being  consequently  merged  in  the  con- 
clusion,— the  question  should  be  on  agree- 
ing to  the  resolutions,  or  on  adopting    the 


IG-i  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

order,  or  other  proposition,  or  on  passing  or 
corning  to  the  vote,  recommended  by  the 
committee;  and  the  same  should  be  the  form 
of  the  question,  when  the  report  consists 
merely  of  resolutions,  etc.,  without  any  in- 
troductory part. 

SEC.  V.    COMMITTEE    OF    THE 
WHOLE. 

297.  Committee  of  the  Whole  :  How 
Formed. — When  a  subject  has  been  ordered 
to  be  referred  to  a  committee  of  the  whole, 
the  form  of  going  from  the  assembly  into 
committee,  is,  for  the  presiding  officer,  at 
the  time  appointed  for  the  committee  to  sit, 
on  motion  made  and  seconded  for  the  pur- 
pose, to  put  the  question  that  the  assembly 
do  now  resolve  itself  into  a  committee  of  the 
whole,  to  take  under  consideration  such  a 
matter,  naming  it.  If  this  question  is  deter-  ' 
mined  in  the  affirmative,  the  result  is  declared 
by  the  presiding  officer,  who,  naming  some 
member  to  act  as  chairman  of  the  committee, 
then  leaves  the  chair,  and  takes  a  seat  else- 
where, like  any  other  member;  and  the 
person  appointed  chairman  seats  himself  (not 
in  the  chair  of  the  assembly  but)  at  the  clerk's 
table. 


QUORUM   IN.  165 

298.  Chairman  of  Committee  of  the 
Whole   Usually  Named  by  Presiding* 
Officer :   But    May    be    Elected.—  The 

chairman  named  by  the  presiding  officer  is 
generally  acquiesced  in  by  the  committee; 
though,  like  all  other  committees,  a  com- 
mittee of  the  whole  have  a  right  to  elect 
a  chairman  for  themselves,  some  member, 
by  general  consent,  putting  the  question. 
[1  340.] 

299.  Quorum  in. — The  same  number  of 
members  is  necessary  to  constitute  a  quorum 
of  a  committee  of  the  whole,  as  of  the  as- 
sembly; and  if  the  members  present  fall  be- 
low a  quorum,  at  any  time,  in  the  course  of 
the  proceedings,  the  chairman,  on  a  motion 
and    question,    rises, — the   presiding    officer 
thereupon  resumes  the  chair, — and  the  chair- 
man informs  the  assembly  (he  can  make  no 
other  report)  of  the  cause  of  the  dissolution 
of  the  committee. 

300.  Presiding    Officer    Should     be 
Present. — When  the  assembly  is  in  commit- 
tee of  the  whole,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  presid- 
ing officer  to  remain  in  the  assembly-room, 
in  order  to  be  at  hand  to  resume  the  chair, 
in  case  the  committee  should  be  broken  up 


166  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

by  some  disorder,  or  for  want  of  a  quorum, 
or  should  rise,  either  to  report  progress,  or  to 
make  their  final  report  upon  a  matter  com- 
mitted to  them. 

301.  Duty  of  Clerk.— The  clerk  of  the 
assembly  does  not  act  as  clerk  of  the  com- 
mittee (this  is  the  duty  of  the  assistant  clerk 
in  legislative  bodies),  or  record  in  his  journal 
any  of  the  proceedings  or  votes  of  the  com- 
mittee, but  only  then  report  as  made  to  the 
assembly. 

302.  Proceedings  :    Points  of  Differ- 
ence in. — The  proceedings  in  a  committee  of 
the  whole,  though,  in  general,  similar  to  those 
in  the  assembly  itself,  and  in  other  commit- 
tees, are  yet  different  in  some  respects,  the 
principal  of  which  are  the  following: — 

303.  Previous  Question  Not  in  Order. 
—First.   The   previous   question    cannot  be 
moved  in  a  committee  of  the  whole.     The 
only  means  of  avoiding  an  improper  discus- 
sion  is,  to   move   that   the  committee  rise; 
and,  if   it  is  apprehended,    that   the   same 
discussion   will   be  attempted  on  returning 
again    into    committee,    the   assembly    can 
discharge  the  committee,  and  proceed  itself 
with  the  business,  keeping  down   any  im- 


I 


CANNOT   ADJOURN.  167 

proper  discussion  by  means  of  the  previous 
question.* 

304.  Cannot  Adjourn. — Second.  A  com- 
mittee of  the  whole  cannot  adjourn,  like 
other  committees,  to  some  other  time  or 
place,  for  the  purpose  of  going  on  with  and 
completing  the  consideration  of  the  subject 
referred  to  them;  but,  if  their  business  is 
unfinished,  at  the  usual  time  for  the  assem- 
bly to  adjourn,  or,  for  any  other  reason,  they 
wish  to  proceed  no  further  at  a  particular 
time,  the  form  of  proceeding  is,  for  some 
member  to  move  that  the  committee  rise, — 
report  progress, — and  ask  leave  to  sit  again; 
and,  if  this  motion  prevails,  the  chairman 
rises, — the  presiding  officer  resumes  the 
chair  of  the  assembly, — and  the  chairman  of 
the  committee  informs  him  that  the  com- 
mittee of  the  whole  have,  according  to  order, 
had  under  their  consideration  such  a  matter, 
and  have  made  some  progress  therein;!  but, 
not  having  had  time  to  go  through  with  the 
same,  have  directed  him  to  ask  leave  for  the 


*  If  the  object  be  to  stop  debate,  that  can  only  be  effected, 
in  the  same  manner,  unless  there  is  a  special  rule,  as  to  the 
time  of  speaking,  or  to  taking  a  subject  out  of  committee. 

t If  it  is  a  second  time,  the  expression  is,  "some  further 
progress,"  etc. 


168  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

committee  to  sit  again.  The  presiding 
officer  thereupon  puts  a  question  on  giving 
the  committee  leave  to  sit  again,  and  also  on 
the  time  when  the  assembly  will  again  resolve 
itself  into  a  committee.  If  leave  to  sit  again 
is  not  granted,  the  committee  is  of  course 
dissolved. 

305.  Unlimited  Debate.— Third.  In  a 
committee  of  the  whole,  every  member  may 
speak   as    often  as  he  pleases,  provided  he 
can  obtain  the  floor;  whereas,  in  the  assem- 
bly itself,  no  member  can  speak  more  than 
once. 

306.  Cannot  Refer  Matters  to  Other 
Committees. — Fourth.  A  committee  of  the 
whole   cannot  refer  any  matter  to  another 
committee;  but  other  committees   may  and 
do  frequently  exercise  their  functions,  and 
expedite   their  business,  by  means  of  sub- 
committees of  their  own  members. 

307.  Presiding  Officer  May  Debate. 
— Fifth.  In  a  committee  of  the  whole,  the! 
presiding    officer    of    the    assembly    has    aj 
right  to  take  a  part  in  the  debate  and  pro-j 
ceedings,  in  the  same  manner  as  any  other 
member. 

308.  Cannot  Punish    for    Disorderly 
Conduct. — Sixth.     A     committee     of    thd 


COMMITTEE    RISES.  169 

whole,  like  a  select  committee,  has  no 
authority  to  punish  a  breach  of  order, 
whether  of  a  member,  or  stranger;  but  can 
only  rise  and  report  the  matter  to  the  assem- 
bly, who  may  proceed  to  punish  the  offender. 
Disorderly  words  must  be  written  down  in 
committee,  in  the  same  manner  as  in  the  as- 
sembly, and  reported  to  the  assembly  for 
their  animadversion. 

309.  Second  to  Motion  Not  Neces- 
sary.— The  foregoing  are  the  principal  points 
of  difference  between  proceedings  in  the  as- 
sembly and  in  committees  of  the  whole;  in 
most  other  respects  they  are  precisely  similar. 
It  is  sometimes  said,  that  in  a  committee  of 
the  whole,  it  is  not  necessary  that  a  motion 
should  be  seconded.*     There  is  no  founda- 
tion, however,  either  in  reason  or  parliamen- 
tary usage,  for  this  opinion. 

310.  Committee  Rises  :    When  and 
How,   and  Action    Thereon. — When  a 
committee  of  the  whole  have  gone  through 
with  the  matter  referred  to  them,  a  member 
moves  that  the  committee  rise,  and  that  the 
chairman   (or  some   other  member)  report 
their  proceedings  to  the  assembly;   which 

*Not  necessary  anywhere.— J.  J.  I. 


170  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

being  resolved,  the  chairman  rises  and  goes 
to  his  place, — the  presiding  officer  resumes 
the  chair  of  the  assembly, — and  the  chair- 
man informs  him,  that  the  committee  have 
gone  through  with  the  business  referred 
to  them,  and  that  he  is  ready  to  make  their 
report,  when  the  assembly  shall  think  proper 
to  receive  it.  The  time  for  receiving  the 
report  is  then  agreed  upon;  and,  at  the  time 
appointed,  it  is  made  and  received  in  the 
same  manner  as  that  of  any  other  committee. 
(286). 

311.  Time  of  Report  Usually  Fixed  : 
But  Not  Uniformly.— It  sometimes  hap- 
pens, that  the  formality  of  a  motion  and 
question  as  to  the  time  of  receiving  a  report 
is  dispensed  with.  If  the  assembly  are  ready 
to  receive  it,  at  the  time,  they  cry  out,  "  now, 
now,"  whereupon  the  chairman  proceeds;  if 
not  then  ready,  some  other  time  is  mentioned, 
as  "  to-morrow,"  or  "  Monday,"  and  that 
time  is  fixed  by  general  consent.  But,  when 
it  is  not  the  general  sense  of  the  assembly  to 
receive  the  report  at  the  time,  it  is  better  to 
agree  upon  and  fix  the  time  by  a  motion  and 
question. 


PRESIDING  OFFICES.  171 


CONCLUDING  REMARKS. 


312.  In  bringing  this  treatise  to  a  close,  it 
will  not  be  deemed  out  of  place,  to  make  a 
suggestion  or  two  for  the  benefit  of  those 
persons,  who  may  be  called  upon  to  act  as 
presiding  officers,  for  the  first  time. 

313.  Presiding    Officer :    Should   be 
Constantly  Attentive  :  Why.  —  One  of 
the    most    essential    parts   of   the   duty   of 
a  presiding   officer   is,    to   give   the   closest 
attention  to  the  proceedings  of  the  assem- 
bly,   and,    especially,    to    what    is   said    by 
every    member   who   speaks.     Without    the 
first,    confusion   will   be   almost   certain   to 
occur;  wasting  the  time,  perhaps  disturbing 
the  harmony,  of  the  assembly.     The  latter  is 
not  merely  a  decent  manifestation  of  respect 
for  those  who  have  elevated  him  to  an  honor- 
able  station;    but   it   tends   greatly   to   en- 
courage timid  or  diffident  members,  and  to 
secure  them  a  patient  and  attentive  hearing; 


172  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

and  it  often  enables  the  presiding  officer,  by 
a  timely  interference,  to  check  offensive 
language,  in  season  to  prevent  scenes  of 
tumult  and  disorder,  such  as  have  sometimes 
disgraced  our  legislative  halls. 

314.  Presiding  Officer:    Should    In- 
sist   Upon    Observance  of   Rules.— It 
should  be  constantly  kept  in  mind  by  a  pre- 
siding officer,  that,  in  a  deliberative  assem- 
bly, there   can  regularly  be  but  one   thing 
done  or  doing,  at  the  same  time.  This  caution 
he  will  find  particularly  useful 'to  him,  when- 
ever a  quarrel  arises  between  two  members, 
in  consequence  of  words  spoken  in  debate. 
In  such   a  case  he  will  do  well  to  require 
that  the  regular  course  of  proceeding  shall 
be   strictly  pursued;  and   will  take  care  to 
restrain    members   from   interfering  in  any 
other   manner.     In  general,   the   solemnity 
and  deliberation,  with  which  this  mode  is 
attended,  will  do  much  to  allay  heat  and  ex- 
citement, and  to  restore  harmony  and  order 
to  the  assembly. 

315.  Object     of    Rules.— A    presiding 
officer  will   often  find  himself  embarrassed, 
by  the  difficulty,  as  well  as  the  delicacy,  of 
deciding  points  of  order,  or  giving  directions 
as  to  the  manner  of  proceeding.     In  such 


OBJECT   OF   RULES.  173 

cases,  it  will  be  useful  for  him  to  recollect, 
that, — 

THE  GREAT  PURPOSE  OF  ALL  RULES  AND 
FORMS,  IS  TO  SUBSERVE  THE  WILL  OF  THE 
ASSEMBLY  RATHER  THAN  TO  RESTRAIN  IT; 
TO  FACILITATE,  AND  NOT  TO  OBSTRUCT,  THE 
EXPRESSION  OF  THEIR  DELIBERATE  SENSE. 


174  PARLIAMENTAKY   PRACTICE. 


ADDITIONS  AND  CORRECTIONS, 


§21.    GENERAL  CONSENT. 

[The  sign  §,  at  the  head  of  a  note,  refers  to  the  paragraph 
in  the  body  of  the  work  to  which  the  note  belongs.] 

316.  General  Consejit :   Meaning  of. 

— The  terms,  "general  consent,"  as  used  in 
parliamentary  practice,  denote  the  unani- 
mous opinion  of  the  assembly,  when  their 
opinion  is  expressed  informally,  and  not  by 
means  of  a  vote.  Whenever,  therefore,  it  is 
said,  that  the  general  consent  of  the  assem- 
bly is  necessary  to  the  adoption  of  any 
measure,  it  is  to  be  understood,  that  if  the 
question  is  proposed  informally,  no  objection 
must  be  made  to  it,  or  that  if  proposed  in  a 
formal  manner,  the  vote  in  its  favor  must  be 
unanimous. 

§51.  READING  PETITION. 

317.  Petitions:  Must  Be  Read. — When 
a  petition  has  been  received,  the  next  step 


MOTIOXS.  175 

in  the  proceedings  is  the  reading  of  it  by  the 
clerk,  for  the  information  of  the  assembly; 
which,  though  in  the  usual  course  of  business, 
and  not  likely  to  be  objected  to,  after  the  peti- 
tion has  been  received,  is  nevertheless  the 
subject  of  a  motion  and  question,  to  be 
regularly  submitted  to  the  assembly  and 
voted  upon;  and,  until  a  petition  has  been 
read,  no  order  can  properly  be  made 
respecting  it,  not  even  for  its  lying  on  the 
table.* 

§  55.  SECONDARY  MOTION. 

318.  Motions :  When  Need  Not  be 
Seconded. — An  exception  to  the  general 
rule,  requiring  motions  to  be  seconded, 
occurs,  when  it  is  proposed  to  proceed  with, 
or  to  execute,  or  to  enforce,  an  order  of  the 
assembly;  as,  for  example,  when  it  is  moved 
to  proceed  with  an  order  of  the  day,  or  when 
a  member  suggests  or  calls  for  the  enforce- 
ment of  some  order  relating  to  the  observ- 
ance of  decorum,  or  the  regularity  of  pro- 
ceeding. Thus,  in  the  English  house  of 
commons,  a  single  member  may  require  the 

*  Petitions  are  no  longer  read .  They  are  received,  referred, 
or  otherwise  disposed  of,  and  noted  in  the  journal  by  general 
order.— J.  J.  L 


176  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

enforcement  of  the  standing  order  for  the 
exclusion  of  strangers;  and,  so,  when  the 
second  or  other  reading  of  a  bill  is  made  the 
order  for  a  particular  day,  a  motion,  on  that 
day,  to  read  the  bill  according  to  the  order, 
need  not  be  seconded. 

§  56.  BEFORE  STATEMENT  OF  MOTION 
FROM  THE  CHAIR. 

319.  Debate  :  When  in   Order.— The 

principle  stated  in  this  paragraph,  must  not 
be  understood  to  preclude  all  proceeding 
with,  or  allusion  to,  a  motion,  until  it  has 
been  stated  from  the  chair.  On  the  con- 
trary, after  a  motion  has  been  made,  or  made 
and  seconded,  but  not  yet  proposed  as  ;i 
question,  it  is  competent  for  the  mover  to 
withdraw  or  modify  it,  either  of  himself,  or 
fen  the  suggestion  of  some  other  member,  or 
of  the  presiding  officer,  and  without  any 
motion  or  vote  for  the  purpose.  The  rule 
only  requires,  that,  until  a  motion  is  regu- 
larly seconded  and  stated,  it  should  not  be 
spoken  to  as  a  question  for  the  decision  of 
the  assembly,  or  be  made  the  subject  of  any 
motion  or  proceeding  as  such.  While,  there- 
fore, the  presiding  officer  should  permit 
members  to  make  remarks  or  suggestions, 


MOTION    TO    LAY    OX    TABLE.  1  77 

for  the  purposes  alluded  to,  with  reference  to 
motions  not  yet  stated,  he  should  be  careful 
to  check  and  prevent  all  observations  which 
may  tend  to  excite  debate;  it  being  a  general 
rule,  that  no  debate  can  be  allowed  to  take 
place  on  any  subject,  unless  there  is  a  ques- 
tion pending  at  the  time. 

§  71.     LIE   ON  THE  TABLE. 

320.  Motion  to  Lay  on  Table  :  May 
Be  Limited.     Proper  Order  in. — When 
any  motion  or  proposition,  report,  resolution, 
or  other  matter,  has  been  ordered  to  lie  on 
the   table,  it  is  not  in  strictness  allowable  to 
make  any  further  order,  with  reference  to  the 
same  subject,  on  the  same  day.     The  order 
may,  however,  be  limited  to  a  specific  time; 
as,  for  example,  until   some  other  topic   or 
subject  is  disposed  of. 

The  proper  motion,  for  proceeding  with 
a  matter  which  has  been  ordered  to  lie  on 
the  table,  is,  that  the  assembly  do  now 
proceed  to  consider  that  matter  or  subject. 
The  motion  sometimes  made,  is,  that  the 
subject  be  taken  up,  or  taken  up  for  con- 
sideration. 

§  75.     AUTHORITY  OF  COMMITTEE. 

321.  Power   of  Committee    Strictly 


178  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

Limited. — The  authority  of  a  committee, 
in  reference  to  the  subject  matter  referred 
to  its  consideration,  as  well  as  to  the  time 
and  manner  of  its  proceeding,  depends 
w holly  upon,  and  is  derived  from,  the  order 
by  which  the  committee  is  instituted.  It 
can  only  consider  the  matter  referred  to  it; 
and,  consequently,  is  not  at  liberty,  like  the 
assembly  itself,  to  change  the  subject  under 
consideration  by  means  of  an  amendment. 
This  rule  is  equally  applicable  to  committees 
of  the  whole. 

g  92,  93.     MODIFICATION   OR  AMEND- 
MENT  OF  A  MOTION  BY  THE 
MOVER. 

322.  Power  of  Mover  of  an  Amend- 
ment to  Amend. — Before  a  motion  has 
been  stated,  the  mover,  as  already  remarked 
(note  to  §  56),  may  modify  or  withdraw  it  at 
his  pleasure;  after  it  has  been  stated,  he  can 
only  withdraw  or  modify  it  by  general  con- 
sent; he  may,  however,  like  any  other  mem- 
ber, move  to  amend.  The  acceptance  by  the 
mover,  of  an  amendment  moved  or  suggested 
by  some  other  member,  stands  upon  the 
same  ground. 


MOTION    TO    STRIKE    OUT.  179 

§  112,  122.     AMENDMENTS   BY  STRIKING 
OUT. 

323.  Motion  to  Strike  Out  :  How 
Stated:  Effect  of  Vote.  Motion  to 
Strike  Out  and  Insert  Necessarily 
Divided. — When  the  parliamentary  form 
of  putting  the  question,  on  a  motion  to 
strike  or  leave  out  words,  is  adopted,  the 
question  is  first  stated,  that  the  words  pro- 
posed to  be  struck  out  stand  as  part  of  the 
motion.  If  this  question  passes  in  the 
negative,  a  question  is  then  to  be  stated  on 
inserting  the  words  proposed,  which  may  be 
amended  like  any  other  motion  to  insert  or 
add  words.  If  the  question  on  the  standing 
of  the  words  passes  in  the  affirmative,  the 
residue  of  the  motion  to  strike  out  and  insert 
falls  without  a  question.  According  to  the 
parliamentary  form,  therefore,  a  motion  to 
strike  out  and  insert  is  necessarily  divided.* 
The  remark  of  Mr.  Jefferson,  quoted  in  the 
note  to  §  122,  that  "  the  question,  if  desired, 
is  then  to  be  divided,"  etc.,  may  be  ex- 
plained by  supposing,  that  when  a  motion 
was  made  to  strike  out  and  insert,  which 
was  7iot  objected  to,  the  question  was  pro- 
posed in  the  terms  of  the  motion;  but,  that, 

*According  to  modern  practice  it  is  indivisible.— J.  J.  I. 


180  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

if  objected  to,  it  was  then  to  be  put,  of 
course,  in  the  parliamentary  form.  In 
the  house  of  delegates  of  Virginia,  of  which 
Mr.  Jefferson  had  been  a  member,  the 
parliamentary  form  of  stating  the  question 
was  in  use. 

§  128  to  133.     AMENDMENT  CHANGING 
THE  NATURE  OF  A  QUESTION. 

324.  Amendment    to   Be    Germane : 
Rule  in  Massachusetts.— In  some  legis- 
lative assemblies,  the  house  of  representatives 
of  Massachusetts,  for  example,  it  is  provided 
by  a  special  rule,  that  no  motion  or  proposi- 
tion, relative  to  a  different  subject  from  the 
one  under  consideration,  shall  be  admitted 
under  color  of  an  amendment.     When  a  rule 
of  this  nature  is  in  force,  the  assembly,  by 
proceeding  to  consider  a  given  subject,  places 
•tself  in  the  situation  of  a  committee,  to  whom 
that  subject  is  referred. 

§  137.  MOTION  TO  ADJOURN. 

325.  Why  Motion  to  Adjourn    Not 
Amendable. — The  reason,  why  a  motion  to 
adjourn,  moved  for  the   purpose   of   super- 
seding  or  suppressing  a  pending  question. 
is  not  susceptible  of  amendment,  is,  that  if 


QUESTIONS   OF   ORDER.  181 

amended,  it  would  at  once  become  inadmis- 
sible, in  point  of  order,  on  the  ground  of  its 
being  introductory  to  a  second  question, 
having  no  privilege  to  take  the  place  of  a 
question  already  pending  and  entitled  to  be 
first  disposed  of. 

§  143.     ORDER  OF  THE  DAY. 
See  note  to  §  55. 

§  154.    QUESTIONS  OF  ORDER. 

326.  Questions  of  Order  :  Powers  and 
Duties  of  Presiding  Officer  in  England 
and  United  States. — In  the  British  parlia- 
ment, the  presiding  officers  do  not  appear  ti 
consider  it  their  duty  to  decide  points  of  order 
unless  appealed  to  by  the  house  for  that  pur- 
pose; which,  in  the  commons,  is  usually  effect- 
ed by  a  general  cry  of  chair  from  the  members; 
and,  it  is  extremely  rare,  that  an  opinion, 
given  in  answer  to  such  a  call,  is  not  sub- 
mitted to  by  the  house.  If  not  satisfactory, 
the  point  of  order  may  be  separated  from 
the  main  question,  by  a  motion  and  question 
for  the  purpose,  on  which  the  presiding 
officer's  decision  may  be  overruled;  or,  with- 
out any  distinct  question  being  made,  the 
house  may  proceed  to  pass  upon  the  point  of 


182  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

order,  as  involved  in  the  main  question,  and, 
in  deciding  the  latter,  may  go  contrary  to 
the  opinion  of  the  presiding  officer,  upon 
the  matter  of  order.  In  the  legislative  as- 
semblies of  this  country,  it  is  generally,  if 
not  universally,  provided  by  a  special  rule, 
4  that  every  question  of  order  shall,  in  the  first 
instance,  be  decided  by  the  presiding  officer, 
subject  to  an  appeal  to  the  assembly  itself. 
Such,  also,  appears  to  be  the  usage  of  delib- 
erative assemblies,  not  legislative  in  their 
character.  And,  it  is  on  these  grounds  of 
rule  and  usage,  that  the  doctrine  laid  down 
in  this  paragraph  is  founded. 

The  statement,  that  questions  of  order  are 
to  be  decided,  in  the  first  instance,  by  the 
presiding  officer,  without  any  previous 
debate,  or  discussion  by  the  assembly,  must 
not  be  understood  to  mean,  that  the  presid- 
ing officer  is  precluded  from  allowing  mem- 
bers to  express  their  opinions  upon  the  point 
of  order,  before  himself  deciding  it;  but, 
merely,  that  the  matter  is  not  then  to  be  de- 
bated and  discussed,  as  a  question  to  be 
decided  by  the  assembly.  The  presiding 
officer,  before  expressing  his  own  opinion, 
may,  if  he  pleases,  take  the  opinions  of  other 
members.  It  is  manifest,  however,  that  when 


CALLS   TO   ORDER.  183 

he  is  ready  to  give  his  own  opinion,  he  may 
proceed  at  once,  and  cannot  be  precluded 
from  doing  so  by  any  other  member  claiming 
a  right  to  be  first  heard. 

§  161.    WITHDRAWAL  OF  A  MOTION. 

327.  Motion    Stated    Can    Only    be 
Withdrawn    by    General    Consent   or 
Leave. — A.  motion,  when  made,  seconded, 
and   stated,  cannot   be   withdrawn    without 
the   general  consent,  or,  if  put  formally  to 
the   question,    the   unanimous   vote   of   the 
assembly. 

§  198.     See  note  to  §  36. 

§200.     INTERRUPTION  OF  A  MEMBER 
SPEAKING  BY  A  CALL  TO  ORDER. 

328.  Calls  to  Order :  Duties  of  Pre- 
'siding  Officer  in. — The  rule  stated  in  this 
paragraph,  that  a  member  speaking  cannot 
rightfully  be  interrupted  in  his  speech,  but 
by  a  call  to  order,  does  not  make  it  the  duty 
of   the  presiding  officer  to  refuse  to  hear  a 
member,  who  rises  and  addresses  the  chair 
while  another  is  speaking;  for,  if  this  were 
the   case,  the   presiding   officer   could   very 
rarely  know   whether   there   might  not   be 


184  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

occasion  for  the  interruption;  and  would 
thus  be  in  danger  of  keeping  the  assembly 
in  ignorance  of  matters,  which  it  might  be 
of  the  highest  concern  for  them  to  know. 
When,  therefore,  a  member  rises  while 
another  is  speaking,  and  addresses  the  chair, 
he  should  inform  the  presiding  officer  that 
he  rises  to  a  point  of  order,  or  to  the  orders 
of  the  assembly,  or  to  a  matter  of  privilege. 
It  will  then  be  the  duty  of  the  presiding 
officer  to  direct  the  member  speaking  to 
suspend  his  remarks,  or  to  resume  his  seat, 
and  the  member  rising  to  proceed  with  the 
statement  of  his  point  or  other  matter  of 
order,  or  of  privilege.  If  the  latter,  on 
proceeding,  discloses  matter  which  shows 
that  the  interruption  was  proper,  the  subject 
so  introduced  must  first  be  disposed  of;  and 
then  the  member  who  was  interrupted,  is  to 
be  directed  to  proceed  with  his  speech.  If 
it  appears  that  there  was  no  sufficient  ground 
for  the  interruption,  the  member  rising  is  to 
be  directed  to  resume  his  seat,  and  the  mem- 
ber interrupted  to  proceed  with  his  speech. 
Every  member,  therefore,  possessing  tire 
right  to  interrupt  another  in  his  speech,  on  a 
proper  occasion,  any  wanton  abuse  of  this 
right,  for  the  purpose  of  personal  annoyance, 


CALLS   TO   ORDER.  185 

is  liable  to  censure  and  punishment;  it  being 
itself  a  breach  of  order  unnecessarily  and 
wantonly  to  call  or  interrupt  another  mem- 
ber to  order. 

In  reference  to  the  occasions,  on  which 
the  interruption  of  a  member  speaking  is 
allowed,  it  is  to  be  observed,  that  they  are 
not  restricted,  as  the  language  of  §  200  might 
seem  to  imply,  to  breaches  of  order  in  debate, 
on  the  part  of  the  member  speaking.  Any 
matter  of  privilege,  affecting  the  assembly 
itself,  or  any  of  its  members,  of  which  the 
assembly  ought  to'have  instant  information, 
furnishes  such  an  occasion;  as,  for  example, 
where  access  to  the  place  of  sitting  of  the 
assembly  is  obstructed,  or  the  person  of  a 
member  is  attacked;  or  where  something 
connected  with  the  proceeding  of  the  assem- 
bly requires  instant  attention,  as  where  it 
becomes  necessary  to  have  lights;  or  where 
something  occurs  relative  to  the  member 
himself  who  is  speaking,  as  where  he  is  an- 
noyed and  disturbed  by  noise  and  disorder, 
or  where,  in  consequence  of  his  strength 
failing  him,  it  becomes  necessary  that  he 
should  finish  his  speech  sitting. 


186  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

§207.    PRECEDENCE    IN    SPEAKING  OF 
THE  PRESIDING  OFFICER. 

329.  Presiding  Officer:    May  Inter- 
rupt Member  When. — The  rule  stated  in 
this  paragraph  does  not,  of  course,  preclude 
the   presiding   officer    from   interrupting   a 
member  while  speaking,  whenever  a  proper 
occasion  occurs  for  such  an  interruption;  as, 
for  example,  when   the  member  himself  is 
guilty  of  a  breach  of  order. 

§  209.     QUESTIONS  NOT  DEBATABLE. 

330.  In  Absence  of  Special  Rule  All 
Questions   May   Be   Debated.— In    the 
legislative  assemblies  of  this  country,  it   is 
usual  to  provide  by  a  special  rule,  that  cer- 
tain  questions    shall    be    decided     without 
debate.     Among  these,  the  most  common  is 
the   motion   to    adjourn.     In   the   absence, 
however,  of  a  special  rule,  restricting   the 
right  of  debate  in  reference   to   some  par- 
ticular   subject,    every   question,    with    the 
exception   perhaps  of   those   which   require 
unanimity,   that   may  be   moved,    may    be 
debated.      In   both    houses    of    parliament, 
important    debates   have   frequently    taken 
place  on  motions,  as,  for  example,  to  adjourn, 
which,  in  the  legislative  assemblies  of  this 


SPEAKING    BUT   ONCE.  18? 

country,  would  not  generally  be  considered 
debatable. 

§  213.  SEVERAL  QUESTIONS  INVOLVED 
IN  THE  SAME  DEBATE. 

331.  Debate  May  Embrace  Several > 
Questions  :    When. — It  sometimes    hap- 
pens, that  a  question  under  debate  becomes 
enlarged  rather  than  narrowed,  by  the  intro- 
duction of  a  subsidiary   motion;  as,  for  ex- 
ample, when  an  amendment  is  moved,  which 
involves  in  itself  the  merits  of  the  original 
proposition,  in  which  case,  the  debate  may 
embrace  both. 

§  216.  SPEAKING  BUT  ONCE  TO  THE 
SAME  QUESTION. 

332.  Construction  of  Rule  Concern- 
ing Right   to   Speak   But  Once.— The 

rule,  stated  in  this  and  the  preceding  para- 
graphs, refers  solely  to  the  question  techni- 
cally considered,  and  is  wholly  irrespective  of 
the  subject  matter.  No  member  can  speak 
more  than  once  to  the  same  question;  but 
he  may  speak  to  the  same  subject,  as  often 
as  it  is  presented  in  the  form  of  a  different 
question. 


188  PARLIAMENTARY    PRACTICE. 

§218. 

333-  Definition  of  Ambiguous  Ex- 
pression.— The  expression  in  this  para- 
graph, "  to  clear  a  matter  of  fact/'  denotes 
merely  a  statement,  by  a  member  who  has 
already  spoken,  of  facts  which  he  considers 
it  important  for  the  assembly  to  be  possessed 
of,  before  coming  to  a  vote  upon  the  question 
pending. 

§227.     DISORDERLY  WORDS. 

334.  Disorderly  Words  Not  Confined 
to     Debate. — The    offense    of     disorderly 
words   may   be    committed,    not     only     by 
language  used  in  the  course  of  debate,  but 
also  by  words  used  in  making  a  motion,  or 
report. 

§  235.     STATEMENT  OF  MOTION. 

335.  Motion  Not    Always  Formally 
Stated. — Strictly  speaking,  no  question  can 
arise  in  a  deliberative  assembly,  without  a- 
motion     being    first    made    and    seconded; 
though,  sometimes,  for  the  dispatch  of  busi- 
ness, the  presiding  officer  takes  it  for  granted 
that   a   proper   and    usual    motion   is  made 
(when  in  *act  it  is  not),  and  proposes  a  ques- 
tion accordingly. 


RIGHT   AND   DUTY. 

§  243.  RIGHT  AND  DUTY  OF  PRES 
OFFICER  AS  TO  VOTING. 

336.  Right  and  Duty  of  Presiding 
Officer  to  Vote :  English  Practice.— 

The  principle  asserted  in  this  paragraph 
was  laid  down  on  the  authority  of  the  French 
translation  of  a  little  work  of  the  late  Sir 
Samuel  Bomilly  (never  published  in  English), 
on  parliamentary  practice,  in  which  it  is 
stated,  that  the  speaker  of  the  house  of 
commons  has  his  election  to  vote  or  not, 
when  the  house  is  equally  divided.  It 
appears  quite  certain,  however,  from  an 
examination  of  the  published  debates  and 
proceedings  of  the  house  of  commons,  that 
the  speaker  has  no  such  election;  and,  con- 
sequently, either  that  the  author  was  himseif 
mistaken,  or,  which  is  more  probable,  that 
the  translator  mistook  his  author.  Taking 
the  practice  of  the  house  of  commons  as  the 
best  evidence  of  the  general  parliamentary 
law, — and  this  seems  to  be  indisputable, — 
the  rule  laid  down  in  §  243  should  be  modified 
accordingly,  and  thus  stated,  namely: 

"H  the  members  are  equally  divided  it 
then  becomes  the  duty  of  the  presiding 
officer  to  give  the  casting  vote;  in  doing 
which,  he  may,  if  he  pleases,  give  his 
reasons." 


190  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

§  250  to  257.     RECONSIDERATION. 

337.  Reconsideration  :    Of  American 
Origin. — Proceedings,    analagous    in   prin- 
ciple to  the  motion  for  reconsideration,  ap- 
pear  occasionally,    though    very   rarely,    to 
have   been  admitted  in  the   British  parlia- 
ment; but,  it  is  believed,  the  motion  to  re- 
consider, as   in   use   in   this   country,  is   of 
American  origin.     The  motion  is,  in  form, 
that  such  a  vote  be  reconsidered;    in  sub- 
stance, that  the  subject  of  that  vote  be  again 
considered,  upon  the  original  motion,  as  if 
that  motion  had  never  been  considered  and 
passed  upon.     On  the  motion  to  reconsider, 
the  whole  subject  is  as  much  open  for  debate 
as  if  it  had  not  been  discussed  at  all;  and  if 
the  motion  prevail,  the  subject  is  again  open 
for  debate  on  the  original   motion,  in  the 
same   manner  as  if  that  motion  had  never 
been  put  to  the  question. 

§  276.  QUORUM  OF  COMMITTEE. 

338.  Quorum  of  Committee  :  In  Case 
of  Doubt  Should  Be  Fixed  by  Order  of 
Body. — The  statement,  contained   in   this 
paragraph,  that  a  majority  of  the  members 
of  a  committee  is  sufficient  to  constitute  a 
quorum  for  proceeding  with  business,  unless 


KEPOUT   OF   COMMITTEE.  191 

the  number  should  be  otherwise  fixed  by  the 
assembly  itself,  was  made  upon  the  supposi- 
tion, that,  in  this  country,  the  rule  had  been 
so  settled  by  usage.  It  should  also  have 
been  stated,  at  the  same  time,  as  the  parlia- 
mentary rule,  that  the  presence  of  every 
member  is  essential,  and  that  of  a  majority 
is  not  sufficient,  to  constitute  a  committee. 
In  all  places,  therefore,  where  there  is  any 
doubt  as  to  the  existence  of  the  usage,  it  will 
be  proper  that  the  number  of  the  quorum 
should  be  fixed  by  the  assembly  itself,  either 
by  a  general  rule,  or  by  the  order  for  the 
appointment  of  the  committee. 

§  286.    REPORT  OF  COMMITTEE. 

339.  Committee  :  Report  of  Minority 

of. — In  this  and  the  succeeding  paragraphs, 
relating  to  the  report  of  a  committee,  no 
notice  is  taken  of  what  is  commonly  known 
in  this  country  as  a  minority  report;  in 
reference  to  which,  it  being  now  a  proceed- 
ing of  frequent  occurrence,  though  not 
strictly  parliamentary,  some  explanation 
deems  necessary  and  proper. 

The  report  of  a  committee  being  the  con- 
clusion which  is  agreed  to  by  a  majority  of 
the  members,  the  dissenting  or  not-agreeing 


192  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

members,  according  to  strict  parliamentary 
practice,  would  have  no  other  mode  of  bring- 
ing their  views  before  the  assembly,  than  as 
individual  members.  Inasmuch,  however, 
as  such  members  may  be  supposed  to  have 
given  the  subject  equal  consideration  with 
the  other  members  of  the  committee,  and 
may,  therefore,  be  in  possession  of  views  and 
opinions  equally  worthy  of  the  attention  of 
the  assembly,  the  practice  has  become  general 
in  the  legislative  assemblies  of  this  country, 
to  allow  members  in  the  minority  to  present 
their  views  and  conclusions  in  the  parlia- 
mentary form  of  a  report,  which  is  accord- 
ingly known  by  the  somewhat  incongruous 
appellation  of  a  minority  report.  Any  two 
or  more  of  the  members  may  unite  in  such  a 
report,  or  each  one  of  them  may  express  his 
views  in  a  separate  document. 

A  minority  report  is  not  recognized  as  a 
report  of  the  committee,  or  acted  upon  as 
such;  it  is  received  by  courtesy,  and  allowed 
to  accompany  the  report,  as  representing  the 
opinions  of  the  minority;  and,  in  order,  to 
its  being  adopted  by  the  assembly,  it  must  be 
moved  as  an  amendment  to  the  report,  when 
that  comes  to  be  considered. 


CHAIEMAN   OF   COMMITTEE.    -        193 

§297.    CHAIRMAN    OF    COMMITTEE   OF 
THE  WHOLE. 

340.  Chairman  of  Committee  of  the 
Whole  :  Rule  and  Practice  Concern- 
Ing* — The  naming  of  the  chairman  of  a 
committee  of  the  whole,  by  the  presiding 
officer,  which  is  supposed  to  be  the  usual 
practice  in  the  legislative  assemblies  of  this 
country,  ordinarily  takes  place  in  virtue  of  a 
special  rule.  Where  this  is  the  case,  the 
member  so  named  becomes  the  chairman  of 
the  committee.  But,  where  there  is  no  such 
rule,  some  member  is  called  upon  by  one  or 
more  of  the  members  of  the  committee  to 
take  the  chair;  and,  if  no  objection  is  made, 
or  no  other  member  called  to  the  chair,  the 
member  so  designated  becomes  the  chairman. 
If  objection  is  made,  or  any  other  member  is 
called  to  the  chair,  the  chairman  must  be 
regularly  chosen.  But,  in  order  to  do  this, 
the  presiding  officer  should  resume  the  chair, 
and  the  choice  be  made  by  the  assembly, 
acting  as  such,  and  not  in  committee.  The 
statement  in  §  298,  that,  where  a  chairman 
is  to  be  appointed  by  vote,  the  question 
is  to  be  put  by  some  member  in  the  com- 
mittee, though  laid  down  by  Mr.  Jefferson, 
on  the  authority  of  an  old  writer  on  par- 


194  PARLIAMENTARY   PRACTICE. 

liamentary  proceedings,  is  not  sanctioned 
by  Hatsell,  or  borne  out  by  the  modern 
practice  in  the  British  parliament,  in  both 
houses  of  which  the  practice  as  above  stated 
prevails. 


INDEX. 


***  The  figures  refer  to  the  numbers  of  the  paragraphs. 

ACCEPTANCE  by  the  maker  of    a  motion,    of    an 

amendment,  92,  93. 

ADDITION  of  propositions,  how  affected,  88. 
ADJOURNMENT,  without  day,  equivalent  to  a  dis- 
solution, 139. 

effect  of,  on  business  under  consideration,  140. 
motion  for,  takes  precedence  of  all  other  motions, 
137. 

when  it  may  be  amended,  137. 
form  of,  138,  200. 

AMENDMENT,  purposes  of  motions  for,  60,  78. 
order  of  proceeding  in,  95,  191. 
acceptance  of  by  mover  of  proposition,  92,  93. 
of  amendment  by  striking   out   and   inserting, 

107,  108. 
of  an  amendment,  to  be   put  before  the  original 

amendment,  110. 
of  an  amendment  to  an  amendment,  not  allowed, 

96. 

object  of  such  motion,  how  attained,  96,  97. 
cannot  be  made  to  what  has  been  agreed  to  on  a 

question,  98,  99,  100,  101. 

inconsistency  of,  with  one  already  adopted,  102. 
may  show  the  absurdity   of  the  original  object 
of  the  proposition,  132. 

or  may  change  the  object,  128, 129,  133. 
or  may  defeat  the  object,  130,  131 


196  INDEX. 

AMENDMENT,  by  addition,  88. 
by  separation,  89. 
by  transposition,  90. 
by  striking  out,  94,  103  to  112. 
by  inserting  or  adding,  94,  113  to  121. 
by  striking  out  and  inserting,  94,  122  to  127. 
Motion  for y  by  striking   out   and  inserting,  103, 
104,  111/122. 

may  be  divided,  122. 

may  be  amended,  126. 

manner  of   stating   question    on,    112, 

121,  127. 

precedence  of  question  on,  123. 
to  strike  out,  decided    in  the   negative,  equiva- 
lent to  the  affirmative  of   agreeing,  98,  100, 
252. 

if  passed,  may  not   be  renewed,  103  to 

106,  113  to  116, 119,  124,  125. 
stands   in   the   same  degree  with   the   previous 
question,  and  indefinite  postponement,  184. 
superseded  by  a  motion   to  postpone  to   a   day 

certain,  or  to  commit,  185. 
may  be  amended,  96,  107,  117,  126,  184. 
effect  of  vote  on,  94  to  127,  187. 
to  be  put  before  the  original  motion,  110,  120. 
APOLOGY,  42. 

ASSEMBLY,     DELIBERATIVE,     purposes     of,     how 
effected,  1. 

how  organized,  2,  3. 
judgment  of,  how  expressed,  13. 
ASSEMBLING,  time  of,  to  be  fixed  beforehand,  23. 

place  of,  in  possession  of  assembly,  9. 
AUTHENTICATION  of  acts,  etc.,  of  a  deliberative  as- 
sembly. 27,  32. 
BLANKS,  filling  of,  84. 

with  times  or  numbers,  rule  for,  85,  86,  87. 
See  Precedence. 
CHAIRMAN,  preliminary  election  of,  3. 

See  Presiding  Officer. 
CLERK,  5. 

See  Recording  Officer. 


IXDEX.  197 

COMMITTEES,  objects  and   advantages  of,  258,  260, 

261. 

who  to  compose,  258,  270. 
usually  those  favorable  to  the  proposed  measure, 

271. 

mode  of  appointment  of,  263,  267,  268,  269. 
when  by  the  presiding  officer,  under  a  standing 

rule,  266. 

how  notified  of  their  appointment,  32,  272. 
when  and  where  to  sit,  274,  275,  277. 
select,  259. 

how  appointed,  264  to  269. 
standing,  259. 

what  to  be  referred  to,  74. 
instructions  to,  75,  76,  77,  262. 
list  of,  etc. ,  given  by  the  clerk   to  the  member 

first  appointed,  272. 
person  first   appointed  on,  acts   as  chairman  by 

courtesy,  273. 

proceed  like  other  assemblies,  276,  279. 
may  proceed  by  sub-committees,  306. 
mode  of  proceeding  on  a  paper  which   has  been 

referred  to  them,  279,  281,  283. 
mode  of  proceeding  on  a  paper  originating  in  th<* 

committee,  279,  280,  282. 
manner  of  closing  session  of,  285. 
report  of,  how  made,  282,  283,  284,  286,  287,  292. 
form  of  report  of,  286,  292. 
mode  of  proceeding  on  report  of,  292,  293,  294, 

295,  296. 

acceptance  of  report  of,  295. 
form  of  stating  questions  on  report  of,  295,  296. 

See  Report. 
COMMITTEE  OF  THE  WHOLE,   of  whom  composed, 

259. 

how  constituted,  297. 
what  a  quorum  of,  299. 
who  presides  over,  297,  298, 
who  is  clerk  of,  301. 
proceedings  of,  similar  to  those  of  the  assembly 

itself,  302.  309. 


198  INDEX. 

COMMITTEE  OF  THE  WHOLE,  mode  of  proceeding  if 
one  session  does  not  complete  the  business. 
304. 

who  may  speak  in,  and  how  often,  305. 
cannot  refer  any  matter  to   another  committee, 

306. 

cannot  punish  for  breaches  of  order,  308, 
disorderly  words  in,  how  noticed,  308. 
differences  between   and   other  committees,  303 

to  308. 
presiding  officer   of   the   assembly  to  remain  in 

the  room  during  the  session  of,  300. 
See  Reports,  Disorderly  Words. 
COMMITMENT,  definition  and  purposes  of,  73 
when  a  proper  course,  60. 
what  may  be  committed,  75,  76,  77. 
effect  of  a  vote  on  a  motion  for,  183. 
motion  for,  may  be  amended,  181. 

supersedes  a  motion  to  amend,  185. 
is  of  the  same  degree  with  motions  for 
the  previous   question   and  postpone 
rnent,  182. 
See  Committees. 
COMMUNICATIONS  to  the  assembly,  how  made,  44, 

46,  48,  49. 

CONSENT  of  the  assembly,  in  what  cases,  and  how 
far,  to  be  presumed  by  the  presiding  officer, 
i  35,  237,  293. 

CONTESTED  ELECTIONS,  7. 

See  Returns. 

CREDENTIALS  of  members,  7. 
DEBATE,  proper  character  of,  201. 

should  be  confined  to  the  question,  209. 
usual  mode  of  putting  an  end  to,  220,  221. 

shortening,  222. 
See  Speaking. 

DECORUM,  Breaches  of,  37,  38,  39,  40,  41,  223,  224. 
how  to  be  noticed,  40. 
remedy  for,  224,  225,  226. 
how  a  member  is  to  proceed  to  exculpate  himself 

from  a  charge  of,  40. 
See  Disorderly  Words,  Order. 


IKDEX.  199 

DISORDERLY  WORDS,  course  of  proceeding,    when 

spoken,  227  to  231. 
to  be  written  down  by  the  clerk,  as  spoken,  228, 

229. 

members  not  to  be  censured  for,  unless  com- 
plained of  at  the  time,  232. 
spoken  in  a  committee  during  its  session,  278. 
in  committee  of  the  whole  to   be   written 
down,  and  reported  to  the  assembly.  308. 
DISORDERLY  CONDUCT,  9,  37  to  40,  313. 
DIVISION  of  a  question,  79  to  83,  122,  123. 
effect  of,  80. 

motion  for,  how  made,  80. 
right  to  demand,  81,  82. 
when  it  may  take  place,  83. 

See  Question. 

ELECTIONS  AND  RETURNS,  6,  7,  8. 
EXPULSION,  42. 
FLOOR,  how  to  obtain,  46. 

who  has  a  right  to,  47,  203,  204,  205. 

member  in  possession  of,  to  be  interrupted  only 

by  a  call  to  order,  200. 
when  usually  allowed  to  the  mover  of  a  motion, 

204. 
when  one  relinquishes,  for  one  purpose,  he  does 

so  for  all  purposes,  205,  219. 
FORMS  of  proceeding,  10,  59,  315. 

See  Order,  Rules. 

INCIDENTAL  QUESTIONS,  150  to  165. 
questions  of  order,  151  to  154. 
reading  papers,  155  to  160. 
withdrawal  of  a  motion,  161,  162. 
suspension  of  a  rule,  163,  164. 
amendment  of  amendments,  165. 

See  Question. 
INTRODUCTION  of  business,  how  accomplished,  43. 

See  Rules. 
JOURNAL  of  a  deliberative  assembly,  what  and  how 

kept,  32,  33. 
JUDGMENT  of  an  aggregate  body,  how  evidenced,  14* 


200  INDEX. 

LIE  ON  THE  TABLE,  purpose  of  motion  for,  60,  71,  72 
Motion  for,  cannot  be  amended,  170. 
when  to  be  resorted  to,  171. 
effect  of  vote  on,  71,  72,  172,  173. 
takes  precedence  of  all  other  subsidiary 

motions,  171. 
LIST  of  members,  6. 
MAIN  QUESTION,  63,  64,  135,  213. 
MAJORITY, decision  by,  on  questions  and  elections,  24. 
MEMBERS,  rights  and  duties  of,  36. 
punishments  of,  42. 

not  to  be  present  at  debates  on  matters  concern- 
ing themselves,  41,  225,  230. 
proceedings  on  quarrels  between,  caution  relat- 
ing to,  314. 

MEMBERSHIP,  rights  of,  how  decided,  8. 
MODIFICATION  of  a  motion  by  the  mover,  92. 
MOTION,  definition  of,  45,  59,  233. 
to  be  in  writing,  54. 
to  be  seconded,  53  to  55. 
how  seconded,  55. 
when  in  order,  247. 
subsidiary,  need  not  be  in  writing,  54. 

but  must  be  seconded,  55. 
to  suppress  a  proposition,  62. 
to  be  stated  or  read  for  the  information  of  any 

member,  57. 

can  be  withdrawn  only  by  leave,  56,  92. 
when  before  the  assembly,  none  other  can  be  re- 
ceived, except  privileged  motions,  58. 
is  not  before   the  assembly,  until  stated  by  its 

presiding  officer,  198. 
not  in  order  unless  the  maker  be  called  to  by  the 

presiding  officer,  200. 
by  one  seated,  or  not  addressing  the  chair,  not  to 

be  received,  200. 

principal  and  subsidiary,    cannot  be  made  to- 
gether, 199. 

NAMING  a  member,  what,  40,  225. 
NUMBERS  prefixed   to  paragraphs  of  a  proposition, 
not  a  part  of  it,  91. 


INDEX.  201 

OFFICERS  of  an  assembly,  titles  of,  5. 
who  are,  usually,  26. 
how  appointed,  and  removable,  26. 
a  majority,  necessary  to  elect,  26. 
when  not  members  of  the  assembly,  5. 
pro  tempore,  when  to  be  chosen,  29. 

See  Presiding  Officer,  Recording  Officer. 
ORDER  of  a  deliberative  assembly,  what,  13. 
of  business,  188  to  200. 

how  estimated,  190. 
questions  of,  what,  152. 

how  decided,  154,  248. 

form  of,  on  appeal,  154. 

no  debate  upon,  allowed  during  division. 

248. 

rules  of,  to  be  enforced  without  delay,  151. 
call  to,  effect  of,  214. 

who  may  make,  151. 
interrupts  the  business  under  considera- 
tion, 153. 

See  Disorderly  Conduct,  Disorderly  Words. 
ORDERS  OF  THE  DAY,  definition  of,  142. 

motion  for,  a  privileged  question   for  the  day, 

143  to  145,  146. 

motion  for,  generally,  supersedes  other  proposi- 
tions, 143,  144. 
being  taken  up,  the  business  interrupted  thereby 

is  suspended,  147. 
fall,  if  not  taken  up  on  the  day  fixed,  149. 

unless  by  special  rule,  149. 
ORGANIZATION,  necessity  for,  1. 
usual  mode  of,  3. 
on  report  of  a  committee,  4. 
PAPERS  AND  DOCUMENTS,  in  whose  custody,  33. 
PARLIAMENTARY  LAW  common,  what,  6,  10. 
PARLIAMENTARY  RULES,  whence  derived,  11. 
in  each  State,  how  formed,  11. 

See  Eules. 
PETITIONS,  requisites  to  49. 

to  be  offered  by  members,  49,  50. 
mode  of  offering,  51 . 


202  INDEX. 

PETITIONS,  to  be  read  by  the  clerk,  if  received,  52. 
regular  and  usual  action  on  presenting,  51,  52. 
contents   of,  to  be  known  by  member  present- 
ing, 50. 

to  be  in  respectful  language,  50. 
POSTPONEMENT,  effect  of  vote  on  motion  for,  180. 
motion  for,  may  be  amended,  176. 
how  amended,  177,  178. 
supersedes  a  motion  to  amend,  185. 
is  not  suspended  by  a  motion  to  commit 

or  to  amend,  179. 
is  of  the  same  degree  with  a  motion  for 

the  previous  question,  179. 
indefinite,  purpose  of  motion  for,  60,  67. 
effect  of  vote  on  motion  for,  67. 
to  a  day  certain,  purpose  of  motion  for,  68,  69. 

an  improper  use  of,  70. 
POWER  of  assembly  to  eject  strangers,  9. 
PREAMBLE,    or  title,  usually   considered   after  the 

paper  is  gone  through  with,  192. 
PRECEDENCE  of  motions,  171,  174,  179,  182, 186, 197, 

220.    " 
of  questions,  123,  134,  135,  153. 

as  to  reference  to  a  committee,  74. 
on  motions  to  fill  blanks,  85,  86,  87. 
questions   of   privilege  take   precedence  of   all 

motions  but  for  adjournment,  141. 
PRESIDENT,  5. 

See  Presiding  Officer. 
PRESIDING  OFFICER,  duties  of,  27,  30,  40,  225,  313, 

314. 

to  be  first  heard  on  questions  of  order,  207. 
now  far  member  of  an  assembly,  5. 
not  usually  to  take  part  in  debate,  5,  202. 

but  in  committees  of  the  whole,  307. 
or  on  point  of  order,  154. 
to  give  a  casting  vote,  5,  243. 
effect  of  not  giving  casting  vote,  243. 
may  not  interrupt  one  speaking,  but  to  call  to 
order,  207. 


INDEX.  203 

PRESIDING  OFFICER,  may  not  decide   upon  incon- 
sistency of    a    proposed  amendment   with 
one  already  adopted,  102. 
PREVIOUS  QUESTION,  motion  for,  purpose  of,  60. 

form  of,  64,  170. 

original  use  of,  63,  64,  65. 

present  use  of,  65,  66,  220. 

use  of  in  England,  66. 

cannot  be  amended,  170. 

effect  of  vote  on,  64,  65,  175. 

effect  of  negative  decision  of,  65. 

cannot  be  made  in  committee  of  the  whole,  303. 

stands   in   same   degree   with   other  subsidiary 

motions,  except  to  lie  on  the  table,  174. 
PRIVILEGED  QUESTIONS,  136  to  149. 

adjournment,  137  to  140. 

questions  of  privilege,  141. 

orders  of  the  day,  142  to  149. 

take  precedence*  of  all  motions  but  for  adjourn- 
ment, 141. 

when  settled,  business  thereby  interrupted,  to 

be  resumed,  141. 

PROCEEDINGS,  how  set  in  motion,  43. 
PUNISHMENT  of  members,  41,  42. 

a  question  of,  pending,  the  member  to  withdraw, 

230. 
QUARREL  between  members,  38,  314. 

See  Disorderly  Words. 
QUESTION,  definition  of,  233. 

forms  of,  in  use,  15,  60,  61. 

when  to  be  put,  235. 

mode  of  putting,  236. 

on  a  series  of  propositions,  193. 

on  amendments  reported  by  a  committee,  194. 

mode  of  taking,  238,  240,  241,  242,  245. 

when  and  how  decision  of  may  be  questioned, 
238,  239. 

all  the  members  in  the  room  when  the  question 
is  put  are  bound  to  vote  upon  it,  244. 

members  not  in  the  room,  cannot  vote  on,  244. 

when  taken  by  yeas  and  nays,  245. 


204  INDEX. 

QUESTION,  mode  of  taking,  in  Massachusetts,  246. 
when  and  how  to  be  divided,  79. 
how  taken  when  divided,  80. 
motion  to  divide,  may  be  amended,  80. 
what  may  be  divided,  83. 
who  may  divide,  81,  122. 
i  usually  regulated  by  rule,  82. 

incidental,  defined  and  enumerated,  150  to  165. 
subsidiary,   or  secondary,   defined  and  enumer- 
ated, 166  to  170. 
privileged,  defined  and  enumerated,  136. 

See  Incidental  Questions,  Privileged  Questions , 

Subsidiary  Questions. 
QUORUM,  necessity  for,  17,  19. 
what  constitutes,  18. 

effect  of  want  of,  on  pending  question,  249 
necessary  on  a  division  of  the  assembly,  249. 
want  of,  how  ascertained,  19. 
consequence  of  want  of,  19,  249. 
READING  OF  PAPERS,  by  the  clerk,  155. 

by  members,  not  allowed,  without  leave  obtained 

by  motion  and  vote,  157,  158. 
when  to  be  omitted,  159. 
when  necessary,  if  called  for,  155. 
question  on,  to  be  first  decided,  160. 
RECEPTION,  question  of,  on  petition,  51. 

on  report,  286,  293. 
RECOMMITMENT,  what,  73,  290,  291. 
RECONSIDERATION,  general  principle  relating  to,  250 

to  253. 

motion  for,  allowed  in  this  country,  254,  255. 
effect  of,  256. 

usually  regulated  by  rule,  257. 
RECORDING  OFFICER,  duties  of,*  31,  32,  33,  35. 
how  his  absence  is  to  be  supplied,  34. 
how  elected,  3,  4. 
precedence  of,  if  more  than  one,  5. 
papers  and  documents  to  be  in  his  charge,  33. 
RECURRENCE  OF  BUSINESS,  when    interrupted  by 

want  of  quorum,  249. 
by  motion  for  the  previous  question,  66 


INDEX.  205 

RECURRENCE  OP  BUSINESS,  by  motion  for  indefinite 
postponement,  67. 

to  lie  on  the  table,  71,  72. 
for  adjournment,  140. 
for  the  orders  of  the  day,  147,  148. 
by  a  question  of  privilege,  141. 

of  order,  153,  230. 

by  a  call  of  member  to  order,  200,  214. 
REPORTS  OF  COMMITTEES,  how  made  and  received, 
286  to  389. 

how  treated  and  disposed  of,  292  to  296. 
of  a  paper  with  amendments,  288. 
action  upon,  194,  195,  292  to  296. 
acceptance  of,  295,  296. 
when  a  new  draft  of  a  paper,  196. 
of  committees  of  the  whole,  310. 
when  to  be  received,  311. 
REPRIMAND,  42. 

See  Punishment. 
RESOLUTION,  what,  13,  233. 
RETURNS,  6. 

time  for  investigating,  7. 
mode  of  investigating,  7. 
who  to  be  on  the  investigating  committee,  8. 
who  to  be  heard  on  a  question  on,  8. 
ROLL,  calling  of,  32,  35,  245. 

RULES  of  debate  and  proceeding,  subject  of,  14,  15. 
general  purpose  of,  315. 
what  are  necessarily   adopted  bv  an   assembly, 

10,  20. 

the  same  in  this  country  and  in  England,  11. 
usage  does  not  give  them  the  character  of  general 

laws,  12. 
to  be  enforced  without  delay  or  debate,  22,  151, 

152. 

who  may  notice  an  infringement  of,  22. 
special,  each  assembly  may  adopt,  10,  20. 

supersede  ordinary  parliamentary  rules, 

10. 

usually   provide  for  their  own  amend- 
ment, 21. 


206  IXDEX. 

RULES,   special,  may  be  suspended  on  motion,  21 , 
163,  164. 

motion  to  suspend,  supersedes  the  orig- 
inal question,  163. 
suspended  only  by  general  consent,  21, 

164. 

usually  provide  for  their  own  suspen- 
sion, 164. 
may  determine  the  number  necessary  to; 

express  the  will  of  the  assembly,  25. 
See  Reading  of  Papers,  Speaking. 
SECONDARY  QUESTIONS,  166. 

See  Subsidiary  Questions 
SECONDING  of  motions,  55,  309 
SECRETARY,  5. 

See  Recording  Officer. 

SEPARATION  of  propositions,  how  effected,  89. 
SPEAKING,  rules  as  to  manner  of,  203  to  208. 
as  to  matter  in,  209  to  214. 
as  to  times  of,  215  to  219. 
member,  to  stand  uncovered,  203,  208. 
not  to  make  personal  remarks,  211. 
not  to  mention  names  of  members,  206. 
not  to  reflect  on  the  assembly,  or  on  its 

prior  determinations,  210. 
confined  to  the  subject,  209,  213. 
not  to  be  interrupted,  219. 
to  speak  but  once  on  the  same  question, 
215,  216. 

except  by  leave,  217. 
or  to  explain  himself  in  a  matter-of-fact, 

218. 

See  Debate,  Presiding  Officer. 
SPEECH,  reading  of,  by  member,  157. 
SUBSIDIARY  QUESTIONS,  166  to  187. 
nature  and  effect  of,  166. 
enumeration  of,  167. 
cannot  be  applied  to  one  another,  168. 
exceptions  to  this  rule,  169. 
lie  on  the  table,  171,  172,  173. 
amendment,  184  to  187.  >, 


INDEX.  207 

SUBSIDIARY  QUESTIONS,  previous  question,  174, 175. 
postponement,  176  to  180. 

commitment,  181,  182,  183. 
SUSPENSION  of  a  rule,  21,  163,  164. 

See  Rules 

TRANSPOSITION  of  propositions,  how  effected,  90. 
VICE-PRESIDENT,  duties  of,  5,  28. 

See  Officers. 
VOTE,  what,  13,  233. 
VOTING,  right  and  duty  of,  41,  244. 
prohibition  from.  42. 

See  Members. 

WILL  of  an  assembly,   majority  necessary  to  ex- 
press, 24. 
special  rule  may  determine  what  pro- 

portion  may  express,  25. 
WITHDRAWAL  of  a  motion,  can  be  only  by  leave,  161. 

effect  of  vote  upon  motion  for  leave  for,  162. 
YEAS  AND  NAYS,  how  taken,  32,  245. 

in  Massachusetts,  246. 
what  number  of  members  may  require,  25. 
form  of  putting  question,  245. 


APPENDIX. 

THE  CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  UNITED 
STATES  OF  AMERICA. 

PREAMBLE. 

We,  the  people  of  the  United  States,  in  order  to 
form  a  more  perfect  union,  establish  justice, 
insure  domestic  tranquillity,  provide  for  the 
common  defence,  promote  the  general  wel- 
fare, and  secure  the  blessings  of  liberty  to 
ourselves  and  our  posterity,  do  ordain  and 
establish  this  Constitution  for  the  United 
States  of  America. 

ARTICLE  I. 

SECTION   I. 

All  legislative  powers  herein  granted  shall  be 
vested  in  a  Congress  of  the  United  States,  which 
shall  consist  of  a  Senate  and  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives. 

SECTION  II. 

First  Clause. — The  House  of  Representatives 
shall  be  composed  of  members  chosen  every  sec- 
ond year  by  the  people  of  the  several  States,  and 


210  APPEXUIX. 

the  electors  in  each  State  shall  have  the  qualifica- 
tions requisite  for  electors  of  the  most  numerous 
branch  of  the  State  Legislature. 

Second  Clause. — No  person  shall  be  a  Repre- 
sentative who  shall  not  have  attained  to  the  age 
of  twenty-five  years,  and  been  seven  years  a  citi- 
zen of  the  United  States,  and  wh«  shall  not,  when 
elected,  be  an  inhabitant  of  that  State  in  which 
he  shall  be  chosen. 

Third  Clause. — Representatives  and  direct 
taxes  shall  be  apportioned  among  the  several 
States  which  may  be  included  within  this  Union, 
according  to  their  respective  numbers,  which  shall 
be  determined  by  adding  to  the  whole  number  of 
free  persons,  including  those  bound  to  service  for 
a  term  of  years,  and  excluding  Indians  not  taxed 
three-fifths  of  all  other  persons.  [Altered  by  the 
Fourteenth  Amendment,  Section  II.]  The  actual 
enumeration  shall  be  made  within  three  years 
after  the  first  meeting  of  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States,  and  within  every  subsequent  term 
of  ten  years,  in  such  manner  as  they  shall  by  law 
direct.  The  number  of  Representatives  shall  not 
exceed  one  for  every  thirty  thousand,  but  each 
State  shall  have  at  least  one  Representative;  and 
until  such  enumeration  shall  be  made,  the  State 
of  New  Hampshire  shall  be  entitled  to  choose 
three,  Massachusetts  eight,  Rhode  Island  and 
Providence  Plantations  one,  Connecticut  five, 
New  York  six,  New  Jersey  four,  Pennsylvania 
eight,  Delaware  one,  Maryland  six,  Virginia  ten, 


APPENDIX. 

North  Carolina  five,  South  Carolina  five,  and 
Georgia  three. 

Fourth  Clause. — When  vacancies  happen  in  the 
representation  from  any  State,  the  executive 
authority  thereof  shall  issue  writs  of  election  to 
fill  such  vacancies. 

Fifth  Clause. — The  House  of  Representatives 
shall  choose  their  Speaker  aud  other  officers,  and 
shall  have  the  sole  power  of  impeachment. 

SECTION   III. 

First  Clause.— The  Senate  of  the  United  States 
shall  be  composed  of  two  Senators  from  each 
State,  chosen  by  the  Legislature  thereof  for  six 
years,  and  each  Senator  shall  have  one  vote. 

Second  Clause. — Immediately  after  they  shall 
be  assembled  in  consequence  of  the  first  election, 
they  shall  be  divided  as  equally  as  may  be  into 
three  classes.  The  seats  of  the  Senators  of  the 
first  class  shall  be  vacated  at  the  expiration  of 
the  second  year,  of  the  second  class  at  the  expira- 
tion of  the  fourth  year,  and  of  the  third  class  at 
the  expiration  of  the  sixth  year,  so  that  one-third 
maybe  chosen  every  second  year;  and  if  vacancies 
happen  by  resignation,  or  otherwise,  during  the 
recess  of  the  Legislature  of  any  State,  the  execu- 
tive thereof  may  make  temporary  appointments 
until  the  next  meeting  of  the  Legislature,  which 
shall  then  fill  such  vacancies. 

Third  Clause. — No  person  shall  be  a  Senator 
who  shall  not  have  attained  to  the  age  of  thirty 


212  APPENDIX. 

years,  and  been  nine  years  a  citizen  of  the  United 
States,  and  who  shall  not,  when  elected,  be  an 
inhabitant  of  that  State  for  which  he  shall  be 
chosen. 

Fourth  Clause. — The  Vice-President  of  the 
United  States  shall  be  President  of  the  Senate, 
but  shall  have  no  vote  unless  they  be  equally 
divided. 

Fifth  Clause. — The  Senate  shall  choose  their 
other  officers,  and  also  a  President  pro  tempore, 
in  the  absence  of  the  Vice-President,  or  when  he 
shall  exercise  the  office  of  President  of  the  United 
States. 

Sixth  Clause. — The  Senate  shall  have  the  sole 
power  to  try  all  impeachments.  When  sitting  for 
that  purpose  they  shall  be  on  oath  or  affirmation. 
When  the  President  of  the  United  States  is  tried, 
the  Chief-Justice  shall  preside,  and  no  person 
shall  be  convicted  without  the  concurrence  of 
two- thirds  of  the  members  present. 

Seventh  Clause. — Judgment  in  cases  of  im- 
peachment shall  not  extend  further  than  to  re- 
moval from  office  and  disqualification  to  hold  and 
enjoy  any  office  of  honor,  trust  or  profit  under 
the  United  States;  but  the  party  convicted  shall 
nevertheless  be  liable  and  subject  to  indictment, 
trial,  judgment  and  punishment,  according  to 
law. 

SECTION  IV. 

First  Clause. — The  times,  places  and  manner  of 
holding  elections  for  Senators  and  Representatives 


APPEKDIX.  213 

shall  be  prescribed  in  each  State  by  the  Legisla- 
ture thereof;  but  the  Congress  may  at  any  time 
by  law  make  or  alter  such  regulations,  except  as 
to  the  places  of  choosing  Senators. 

Second  Clause. — The  Congress  shall  assemble 
at  least  once  in  every  year,  and  such  meeting 
shall  be  on  the  first  Monday  in  December,  unless 
they  shall  by  law  appoint  a  different  day. 

SECTION  v. 

First  Clause. — Each  House  shall  be  the  judge 
of  the  elections,  returns  and  qualifications  of  its 
own  members,  and  a  majority  of  each  shall  con- 
stitute a  quorum  to  do  business;  but  a  smaller 
number  may  adjourn  from  day  to  day,  and  may 
be  authorized  to  compel  the  attendance  of  absent 
members  in  such  manner  and  under  such  penalties 
as  each  House  may  provide. 

Second  Clause. — Each  House  may  determine 
the  rules  of  its  proceedings,  punish  its  members 
for  disorderly  behavior,  and  with  the  concurrence 
of  two-thirds,  expel  a  member. 

Third  Clause. — Each  House  shall  keep  a  journal 
of  its  proceedings,  and  from  time  to  time  publish 
the  same,  excepting  such  parts  as  may  in  their 
judgment  require  secrecy;  and  the  yeas  and  nays 
of  the  members  of  either  House  on  any  question 
shall,  at  the  desire  of  one-fifth  of  those  present, 
be  entered  on  the  journal. 

Fourth  Clause. — Neither  House  during  the  ses- 
sion of  Congress  shall,  without  the  consent  of  the 


214:  APPENDIX. 

other,  adjourn  for  more  than  three  days,  nor  to 
any  other  place  than  that  in  which  the  two 
Houses  shall  be  sitting. 

SECTION  VI. 

First  Clause. — The  Senators  and  Representa- 
i  ves  shall  receive  a  compensation  for  their  serv- 
ices, to  be  ascertained  by  law  and  paid  out  of  the 
treasury  of  the  United  States.     They  shall  in  all 
cases,  except  treason,  felony  and  breach  of  the 
peace,  be  privileged  from  arrest  during  their  at-  , 
tendance  at  the  session  of  their  respective  Houses,  j 
and  in  going  to  and  returning  from  the  same;  and 
for  any  speech  or  debate  in  either  House  they 
shall  not  be  questioned  in  any  other  place. 

Second  Clause. — No  Senator  or  Representative  j 
shall,  during  the  time  for  which  he  was  elected,  be  | 
appointed  to  any  civil  office  under  the  authority  I 
of  the  United  States  which  shall  have  been  created 
or  the  emoluments  whereof  shall  have  been  in- 
creased during  such  time;   and  no  person  holding  j 
any  office  under  the  United   States   shall  be  all 
member  of  either  House  during  his  continuance 
in  office. 

SECTION  VII. 

First  Clause. — All  bills  for  raising  revenue 
shall  originate  in  the  House  of  Representatives, 
but  the  Senate  may  propose  or  concur  with  amend- 
ments as  on  other  bills. 

Second  Clause. — Every  bill  which  shall  have 
passed  the  House  of  Representatives  and  the 


APPEKDIX.  215 

Senate  shall,  before  it  become  a  law,  be  presented 
to  the  President  of  the  United  States;  if  he  ap- 
prove he  shall  sign  it,  but  if  not  he  shall  return  it, 
with  his  objections,  to  that  House  in  which  it 
shall  have  originated,  who  shall  enter  their  objec- 
tions at  large  on  their  journal  and  proceed  to 
reconsider  it.  If  after  such  reconsideration  two- 
thirds  of  that  House  shall  agree  to  pass  the  bill,  it 
shall  be  sent,  together  with  the  objections,  to  the 
other  House,  by  which  it  shall  likewise  be  recon- 
sidered, and  if  approved  by  two-thirds  of  that 
House,  it  shall  become  a  law.  But  in  all  such 
cases  the  votes  of  both  Houses  shall  be  determined 
by  yeas  and  nays,  and  the  names  of  the  persons 
voting  for  and  against  the  bill  shall  be  entered  on 
the  journal  of  each  House  respectively.  If  any 
bill  shall  not  be  returned  by  the  President  within 
ten  days  (Sundays  excepted)  after  it  shall  have 
been  presented  to  him,  the  same  shall  be  a  law,  in 
like  manner  as  if  he  had  signed  it,  unless  the  Con 
gress  by  their  adjournment  prevent  its  return,  in 
which  case  it  shall  not  be  a  law. 

Third  Clause. — Every  order,  resolution  or  vote 
to  which  the  concurrence  of  the  Senate  and  House 
of  Representatives  may  be  necessary  (except  on  a 
question  of  adjournment)  shall  be  presented  to 
the  President  of  the  United  States,  and  before  the 
same  shall  take  effect  shall  be  approved  by  him,  or 
being  disapproved  by  him,  shall  be  repassed  by 
two-thirds  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Repre- 


216  APPENDIX. 

sentatives,  according  to  the  rules  and  limitations 
prescribed  in  the  case  of  a  bill. 

SECTION  VIII. 

The  Congress  shall  have  power: 

First  Clause. — To  lay  and  collect  taxes,  duties, 
imposts  and  excises,  to  pay  the  debts  and  provide* 
for  the  common  defense  and  general  welfare  of 
the  United  States;  but  all  duties,  imposts  and 
excises  shall  be  uniform  throughout  the  United 
States. 

Second  Clause. — To  borrow  money  on  the  credit 
of  the  United  States. 

Third  Clause.  —To  regulate  commerce  with  for- 
eign nations,  and  among  the  several  States,  and 
with  the  Indian  tribes. 

Fourth  Clause. — To  establish  a  uniform  rule  of 
naturalization  and  uniform  laws  on  the  subject 
of  bankruptcies  throughout  the  United  States. 

Fifth  Clause. — To  coin  money,  regulate  the 
value  thereof,  and  of  foreign  coin,  and  fix  the 
standard  of  weights  and  measures. 

Sixth  Clause. — To  provide  for  the  punishment 
of  counterfeiting  the  securities  and  current  coin 
of  the  United  States. 

Seventh  Clause. — To  establish  post-offices  and 
post-roads. 

Eighth  Clause. — To  promote  the  progress  of 
science  and  useful  arts,  by  securing  for  limited 
times  to  authors  and  inventors  the  exclusive  right 
to  their  respective  writings  and  discoveries. 


APPENDIX. 

Ninth  Clause. — To  constitute  tribunals  inferior 
to  the  Supreme  Court. 

Tenth  Clause. — To  define  and  punish  piracies 
and  felonies  committed  on  the  high  seas,  and 
offenses  against  the  law  of  nations. 

Eleventh  Clause. — To  declare  war,  grant  letters 
of  marque  and  reprisal,  and  make  rules  concern- 
ing captures  on  land  and  water. 

Twelfth  Clause. — To  raise  and  support  armies; 
but  no  appropriation  of  money  to  that  use  shall 
be  for  a  longer  term  than  two  years. 

Thirteenth  Clause. — To  provide  and  maintain  a 
navy. 

Fourteenth  Clause. — To  make  rules  for  the 
government  and  regulation  of  the  land  and  naval 
forces. 

Fifteenth  Clause. — To  provide  for  calling  forth 
the  militia  to  execute  the  laws  of  the  Union,  sup- 
press insurrections  and  repel  invasions. 

Sixteenth  Clause. — To  provide  for  organizing, 
arming  and  disciplining  the  militia,  and  for  gov- 
erning such  part  of  them  as  may  be  employed  in 
the  service  of  the  United  States,  reserving  to  the 
States  respectively  the  appointment  of  the  officers 
and  the  authority  of  training  the  militia  accord- 
ing to  the  discipline  prescribed  by  Congress. 

Seventeenth  Clause. — To  exercise  exclusive  leg- 
islation in  all  cases  whatsoever,  over  such  district 
(not  exceeding  ten  miles  square)  as  may,  by  cession 
of  particular  States,  and  the  acceptance  of  Con- 
gress, become  the  seat  of  the  Government  of  the 


218  APPENDIX. 

United  States;  and  to  exercise  like  authority  over 
all  places  purchased  by  the  consent  of  the  Legisla- 
ture of  the  State  in  which  the  same  shall  be,  for 
the  erection  of  forts,  magazines,  arsenals,  dock- 
yards, and  other  needful  buildings;  and 

Eighteenth  Clause. — To  make  all  laws  which 
shall  be  necessary  and  proper  for  carrying  into 
execution  the  foregoing  powers,  and  all  other 
powers  vested  by  this  Constitution  in  the  Govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  or  in  any  department 
or  officer  thereof. 

SECTION  IX. 

First  Clause. — The  migration  or  importation  of 
such  persons  as  any  of  the  States  now  existing 
shall  think  proper  to  admit  shall  not  be  prohibited 
by  the  Congress  prior  to  the  year  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  eight,  but  a  tax  or  duty  may 
be  imposed  on  such  importation,  not  exceeding 
ten  dollars  for  each  person. 

Second  Clause. — The  privilege  of  the  writ  of 
habeas  corpus  shall  not  be  suspended,  unless  when 
in  cases  of  rebellion  or  invasion  the  public  safety 
may  require  it. 

Third  Clause. — No  bill  of  attainder  or  ex  post 
facto  law  shall  be  passed. 

Fourth  Clause. — No  capitation  or  other  direct 
tax  shall  be  laid,  unless  in  proportion  to  the 
census  or  enumeration  hereinbefore  directed  to 
be  taken. 

Fifth  Clause. — No  tax  or  duty  shall  be  laid  on 
articles  exported  from  any  State. 


APPENDIX.  219 

Sixth  Clause. — No  preference  shall  be  given  by 
any  regulation  of  commerce  or  revenue  to  the 
ports  of  one  State  over  those  of  another,  nor  shall 
vessels  bound  to  or  from  one  State  be  obliged  to 
enter,  clear  or  pay  duties  in  another. 

Seventh  Clause. — No  money  shall  be  drawn 
from  the  treasury,  but  in  consequence  of  appro- 
priations made  by  law;  and  a  regular  statement 
and  account  of  the  receipts  and  expenditures  of 
all  public  moneys  shall  be  published  from  time  to 
time. 

Eighth  Clause. — No  title  of  nobility  shall  be 
granted  by  the  United  States;  and  no  person 
holding  any  office  of  profit  or  trust  under  them 
shall,  without  the  consent  of  the  Congress,  accept 
of  any  present,  emolument,  office,  or  title  of  any 
kind  whatever,  from  any  king,  prince  or  foreign 
state. 

SECTION  x. 

First  Clause. — No  State  shall  enter  into  any 
treaty,  alliance,  or  confederation;  grant  letters  of 
marque  and  reprisal;  coin  money;  emit  bills  of 
credit;  make  anything  but  gold  and  silver  coin  a 
tender  in  payment  of  debts;  pass  any  bill  of 
attainder  or  ex  post  facto  law,  or  law  impairing 
the  obligation  of  contracts,  or  grant  any  title  of 
nobility. 

Second  Clause. — No  State  shall,  without  the 
consent  of  the  Congress,  lay  any  imposts  or  duties 
on  imports  or  exports,  except  what  may  be  abso- 
lutely necessary  for  executing  its  inspection  laws; 


220  APPENDIX. 

and  the  net  produce  of  all  duties  and  imposts,  laid 
by  any  State  on  imports  and  exports,  shall  be  for 
the  use  of  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States;  and 
all  such  laws  shall  be  subject  to  the  revision  and 
control  of  the  Congress. 

Third  Clause.  —  No  State  shall,  without  the 
consent  of  the  Congress,  lay  any  duty  of  tonnage, 
keep  troops  or  ships  of  war  in  time  of  peace,  enter 
into  any  agreement  or  compact  with  another  State, 
or  with  a  foreign  power,  or  engage  in  war,  unless 
actually  invaded,  or  in  such  imminent  danger  as 
will  not  admit  of  delay. 

ARTICLE  II. 

SECTION  I. 

First  Clause. — The  executive  power  shall  be 
vested  in  a  President  of  the  United  States  of 
America.  He  shall  hold  his  office  during  the 
term  of  four  years,  and,  together  with  the  Vice- 
president,  chosen  for  the  same  term,  be  elected  as 
follows: 

Second  Claiise. — Each  State  shall  appoint,  in 
such  manner  as  the  Legislature  thereof  may 
direct,  a  number  of  electors,  equal  to  the  whole 
number  of  Senators  and  Representatives  to  which 
the  State  may  be  entitled  in  the  Congress;  but  no 
Senator  or  Representative,  or  person  holding  an 
office  of  trust  or  profit  under  the  United  States, 
shall  be  appointed  an  elector. 


APPENDIX.  221 

*  Third  Clause.  — The  electors  shall  meet  in 
their  respective  States,  and  vote  by  ballot  for  two 
persons,  one  of  whom,  at  least,  shall  not  be  an  in- 
habitant of  the  same  State  with  themselves;  and 
they  shall  make  a  list  of  all  the  persons  voted  for, 
and  of  the  number  of  votes  for  each;  which  list 
they  shall  sign  and  certify,  and  transmit  sealed  to 
the  seat  of  Government  of  the  United  States, 
directed  to  the  President  of  the  Senate.  The 
President  of  the  Senate  shall,  in  the  presence  of 
the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives,  open 
all  the  certificates;  and  the  votes  shall  then  be 
counted.  The  person  having  the  greatest  number 
of  votes  shall  be  the  President,  if  such  number  be 
a  majority  of  the  whole  number  of  electors  ap- 
pointed; and  if  there  be  more  than  one  who  have 
such  majority,  and  have  an  equal  number  of 
votes,  then  the  House  of  Representatives  shall  im- 
mediately choose,  by  ballot,  one  of  them  for  Presi- 
dent, and  if  no  person  have  a  majority,  then,  from 
the  five  highest  on  the  list,  the  said  House  shall, 
in  like  manner,  choose  the  President.  But,  in 
choosing  the  President,  the  votes  shall  be  taken  by 
States,  the  representation  from  each  State  having 
one  vote;  a  quorum  for  this  purpose  shall  consist 
of  a  member  or  members  from  two-thirds  of  the 
States;  and  a  majority  of  all  the  States  shall  be 
necessary  to  a  choice.  In  every  case,  after  the 
choice  of  a  President,  the  person  having  the 

*This  clause  has  been  superseded  by  the  Twelfth  Amend- 
ment. 


222  APPENDIX. 

greatest  number  of  votes  of  the  electors  shall  be 
Yice-President.  But,  if  there  should  remain  two 
or  more  who  have  equal  votes,  the  Senate  shall 
choose  from  them,  by  ballot,  the  Vice-President. 

Fourth  Clause. — The  Congress  may  determine 
the  time  of  choosing  the  electors,  and  the  day  on 
which  they  shall  give  their  votes;  which  day  shall 
be  the  same  throughout  the  United  States. 

Fifth  Clause. — No  person  except  a  natural-born 
citizen,  or  a  citizen  of  the  United  States  at  the 
time  of  the  adoption  of  this  Constitution,  shall  be 
eligible  to  the  office  of  President;  neither  shall 
any  person  be  eligible  to  that  office  who  shall  not 
have  attained  to  the  age  of  thirty-five  years,  and 
been  fourteen  years  a  resident  within  the  United 
States. 

Sixth  Clause. — In  case  of  the  removal  of  the 
President  from  office,  or  of  his  death,  resignation, 
or  inability  to  discharge  the  powers  and  duties  of 
the  said  office,  the  same  shall  devolve  on  the  Vice- 
President;  and  the  Congress  may  by  law  provide 
for  the  case  of  removal,  death,  resignation,  or  in- 
ability, both  of  the  President  and  Vice-President, 
declaring  what  officer  shall  then  act  as  President, 
and  such  officer  shall  act  accordingly,  until  the 
disability  be  removed,  or  a  President  shall  be 
elected. 

Seventh  Clause. — The  President  shall,  at  stated 
times,  receive  for  his  services  a  compensation, 
which  shall  neither  be  increased  nor  diminished 
during  the  period  for  which  he  shall  have  been 


APPENDIX.  223 

elected,  and  he  shall  not  receive  within  that  period 
any  other  emolument  from  the  United  States,  or 
any  of  them. 

Eighth  Clause. — Before  he  enter  on  the  execu- 
tion of  his  office,  he  shall  take  the  following  oath 
or  affirmation: 

"I  do  solemnly  swear  (or  affirm)  that  I  will 
faithfully  execute  the  office  of  President  of  the 
United  States,  and  will,  to  the  best  of  my  ability, 
preserve,  protect,  and  defend  the  Constitution  of 
the  United  States." 

SECTION    II. 

First  Clause. — The  President  shall  be  Com- 
mander-in-Chief  of  the  army  and  navy  of  the 
United  States,  and  of  the  militia  of  the  several 
States,  when  called  into  the  actual  service  of  the 
United  States;  he  may  require  the  opinion,  in 
writing,  of  the  principal  officer  in  each  of  the 
executive  departments,  upon  any  subject  relating 
to  the  duties  of  their  respective  offices,  and  lie 
shall  have  power  to  grant  reprieves  and  pardons 
for  offenses  against  the  United  States,  except  in 
cases  of  impeachment. 

Second  Clause. — He  shall  have  power,  by  and 
with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate,  to 
make  treaties,  provided  two-thirds  of  the  Senators 
present  concur;  and  he  shall  nominate,  and  by 
and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate, 
shall  appoint  ambassadors,  other  public  ministers 
and  consuls,  judges  of  the  supreme  court,  and  all 
other  officers  of  the  United  States,  whose  appoint- 


224  APPENDIX. 

ments  are  not  herein  otherwise  provided  for,  and 
which  shall  be  established  by  law;  but  the  Con- 
gress may  by  law  vest  the  appointment  of  such 
inferior  officers,  as  they  think  proper,  in  the  Presi- 
dent alone,  in  the  courts  of  law,  or  in  the  heads  of 
departments. 

Third  Clause.  —The  President  shall  have  power 
to  fill  up  all  vacancies  that  may  happen  during 
the  recess  of  the  Senate,  by  granting  commis- 
sions, which  shall  expire  at  the  end  of  their  next 
session. 

SECTION  III. 

He  shall  from  time  to  time  give  to  the  Congress 
information  of  the  state  of  the  Union,  and  recom- 
mend to  their  consideration  such  measures  as  he 
shall  judge  necessary  and  expedient;  he  may,  on 
extraordinary  occasions,  convene  both  Houses,  or 
either  of  them,  and  in  case  of  disagreement  be- 
tween them,  with  respect  to  the  time  of  adjourn- 
ment, he  may  adjourn  them  to  such  time  as  he 
shall  think  proper;  he  shall  receive  ambassadors 
and  other  public  ministers;  he  shall  take  care  that 
the  laws  be  faithfully  executed,  and  shall  commis- 
sion all  the  officers  of  the  United  States. 

SECTION  IV. 

The  President,  Vice-President,  and  all  civil 
officers  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  removed 
from  office  on  impeachment  for,  and  on  conviction 
of,  treason,  bribery,  or  other  high  crimes  and 
misdemeanors. 


APPENDIX.  225 

ARTICLE   III. 

SECTION   I. 

The  judicial  power  of  the  United  States  shall  be 
vested  in  one  Supreme  Court,  and  in  such  inferior 
courts  as  the  Congress  may  from  time  to  time 
ordain  and  establish.  The  judges,  both  of  the 
Supreme  and  inferior  courts,  shall  hold  their 
offices  during  good  behavior,  and  shall,  at  stated 
times,  receive  for  their  services  a  compensation, 
which  shall  not  be  diminished  during  their  con- 
tinuance in  office. 

SECTION   II. 

First  Clause. — The  judicial  power  shall  extend 
to  all  cases,  in  law  and  equity,  arising  under  this 
Constitution,  the  laws  of  the  United  States,  and 
treaties  made,  or  which  shall  be  made  under  their 
authority ;  to  all  cases  affecting  ambassadors, 
other  public  ministers  and  consuls;  to  all  cases  of 
admiralty  and  maritime  jurisdiction;  to  contro- 
versies to  which  the  United  States  shall  be  a 
party;  to  controversies  between  two  or  more 
States;  between  a  State  and  citizens  of  another 
State ;  between  citizens  of  different  States ;  be- 
tween citizens  of  the  same  State  claiming  lands 
under  grants  of  different  States,  and  between  a 
State,  or  the  citizens  thereof,  and  foreign  States, 
citizens,  or  subjects. 

Second  Clause. — In  all  cases  affecting  ambassa- 
dors, other  public  ministers  and  consuls,  and  those 
in  which  a  State  shall  be  a  party,  the  Supremo 


226  APPENDIX. 

Court  shall  have  original  jurisdiction.  In  all  the 
other  cases  before  mentioned,  the  Supreme  Court 
shall  have  appellate  jurisdiction,  both  as  to  law 
and  fact,  with  such  exceptions  and  under  such 
regulations  as  the  Congress  shall  make. 

Third  Clause. — The  trial  of  all  crimes,  except 
in  cases  of  impeachment,  shall  be  by  jury;  and 
such  trial  shall  be  held  in  the  State  where  the 
said  crimes  shall  have  been  committed;  but  when 
not  committed  within  any  State,  the  trial  shall  be 
at  such  place  or  places  as  the  Congress  may  by 
law  have  directed. 

SECTION  III. 

First  Clause. — Treason  against  the  United  States 
shall  consist  only  in  levying  war  against  them,  or 
in  adhering  to  their  enemies,  giving  them  aid  and 
comfort.  No  person  shall  be  convicted  of  treason 
unless  on  the  testimony  of  two  witnesses  to  the 
same  overt  act,  or  on  confession  in  open  court. 

/Second  Clause. — The  Congress  shall  have  power 
to  declare  the  punishment  of  treason,  but  no  at- 
tainder of  treason  shall  work  corruption  of  blood, 
or  forfeiture,  except  during  the  life  of  the  person 
attainted. 

ARTICLE  IV. 

SECTION  I. 

Full  faith  and  credit  shall  be  given  in  each 
State  to  the  public  acts,  records,  and  judicial  pro- 
ceedings of  every  other  State.  And  the  Congress 


APPENDIX.  227 

may  by  general  laws  prescribe  the  manner  in 
which  such  acts,  records,  and  proceedings  shall 
be  proved,  and  the  effect  thereof. 

SECTION  II. 

First  Clause. — The  citizens  of  each  State  shall 
•  be  entitled  to  all  privileges  and  immunities  of 
citizens  in  the  several  States. 

Second  Clause. — A  person  charged  in  any  State 
with  treason,  felony,  or  other  crime,  who  shall  flee 
from  justice,  and  be  found  in  another  State,  shall, 
on  demand  of  the  executive  authority  of  the  State 
from  which  he  fled,  be  delivered  up,  to  be  re- 
moved to  the  State  having  jurisdiction  of  the 
crime. 

Third  Clause. — No  person  held  to  service  or 
labor  in  one  State,  under  the  laws  thereof,  escap- 
ing into  another,  shall,  in  consequence  of  any  law 
or  regulation  therein,  be  discharged  from  such 
service  or  labor,  but  shall  be  delivered  up  on  claim 
of  the  party  to  whom  such  service  or  labor  may  be 
due. 

SECTION  III. 

First  Clause. — New  States  may  be  admitted  by 
the  Congress  into  this  Union;  but  no  new  State 
shall  be  formed  or  erected  within  the  jurisdiction 
of  any  other  State;  nor  any  State  be  formed  by 
the  junction  of  two  or  more  States,  or  parts  of 
States,  without  the  consent  of  the  Legislatures  of 
the  States  concerned  as  well  as  of  the  Congress. 

Second  Clause. — The  Congress  shall  have  power 


APPENDIX. 

to  dispose  of  and  make  all  needful  rules  and  regi 
lations  respecting  the  territory  or  other  property 
belonging  to  the  United  States;  and  nothing  in 
this  Constitution  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  preju- 
dice any  claims  of  the  United  States,  or  of  any 
j>cTi'ticular  State. 

SECTION  IV. 

The  United  States  shall  guarantee  to  every  State 
in  this  Union  a  republican  form  of  government, 
and  shall  protect  each  of  them  against  invasion; 
and  on  application  of  the  Legislature,  or  of  the 
Executive  (when  the  Legislature  cannot  be  con* 
veued),  against  domestic  violence. 

ARTICLE  V. 

The  Congress,  whenever  two-thirds  of  both 
Houses  shall  deem  it  necessary,  shall  propose 
amendments  to  this  Constitution,  or,  on  the  appli- 
cation of  the  Legislatures  of  two-thirds  of  the 
several  States,  shall  call  a  convention  for  propos- 
ing amendments,  which,  in  either  case,  shall  be 
valid,  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  as  part  of  this 
Constitution,  when  ratified  by  the  Legislatures  of 
three-fourths  of  the  several  States,  or  by  conven- 
tions in  three-fourths  thereof,  as  the  one  or  the 
other  mode  of  ratification  may  be  proposed  by  the 
Congress:  provided  that  no  amendment  which 
may  be  made  prior  to  the  year  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  eight  shall  in  any  manner  affect  the 
first  and  fourth  clauses  in  the  ninth  section  of  the 


APPENDIX.  229 

rst  article;  and  that  no  State,  without  its  con- 
sent, shall  he  deprived  of  its  equal  suffrage  in  the 

Senate. 

ARTICLE  VI. 

First  Clause. — All  debts  contracted  and  engage- 
ments entered  into  before  the  adoption  of  this 
Constitution  shall  be  as  valid  against  the  United 
States  under  this  Constitution  as  under  the  Con- 
federation. 

Second  Clause. — This  Constitution,  and  the  laws 
of  the  United  States  which  shall  be  made  in  pur- 
suance thereof,  and  all  treaties  made,  or  which 
shall  be  made,  under  the  authority  of  the  United 
States,  shall  be  the  supreme  law  of  the  land;  and 
the  judges  in  every  State  shall  be  bound  thereby, 
anything  in  the  Constitution  or  laws  of  any  State 
to  the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

Third  Clause. — The  Senators  and  Representa- 
tives before  mentioned,  and  the  members  of  the 
several  State  Legislatures,  and  all  executive  and 
judicial  officers,  both  of  the  United  States  and  of  the 
several  States,  shall  be  bound  by  oath  or  affirma- 
tion to  support  this  Constitution;  but  no  religious 
test  shall  ever  be  required  as  a  qualification  to  any 
office  or  public  trust  under  the  United  States. 

ARTICLE  VII. 

The  ratification  of  the  conventions  of  nine 
States  shall  be  sufficient  for  the  establishment  of 
this  Constitution  between  the  States  so  ratifying 
the  same. 


230  APPENDIX. 

Done  in  convention  by  the  unanimous  consent 
of  the  States  present  the  seventeenth  day  of  Sep- 
tember in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  eighty-seven,  and  of  the  Independ- 
ence of  the  United  States  of  America  the  twelfth. 
In  witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto  subscribed 
our  names.  Go:  WASHINGTON 

Presidt.  and  Deputy  from  Virginia. 

New  Hampshire.  —  John  Langdon,  Nicholas 
Gilman. 

Massachusetts.  — Nathaniel  Gorham,  Ruf  us  King. 

Connecticut. — Wm.  Saml.  Johnson,  Roger  Sher- 
man. 

New  York. — Alexander  Hamilton. 

New  Jersey. — Wil:  Livingston,  David  Brearley, 
Wm.  Patterson,  Jona:  Dayton. 

Pennsylvania.  —  B.  Franklin,  Thomas  Mifflin, 
Robt.  Morris,  Geo.  Clymer,  Thos.  Fitzsimons, 
Jared  Ingersoll,  James  Wilson,  Gouv  Morris. 

Delaware. — Geo:  Read,  Gunning  Bedford,  Jun., 
John  Dickinson,  Richard  Bassett,  Jaco.  Broom. 

Maryland. — James  McHenry,  Dan  of  St.  Thos 
Jenifer,  Danl.  Carroll. 

Virginia. — John  Blair,  James  Madison,  Jr. 

North  Carolina.—  Wm.  Blount,  Richd.  Dobbs 
Spaight,  Hu  Williamson. 

South  Carolina. — J.  Rutledge,  Charles  Cotes- 
worth  Pinckney,  Charles  Pinckney,  Pierce  Butler. 

Georgia. — William  Few,  Abr  Baldwin. 

Attest :  WILLIAM  JACKSON.  Secretary. 


APPENDIX.  231 


AMENDMENTS  TO  THE  CONSTITUTION. 

PROPOSED     BY    CONGRESS     AND    RATIFIED     BY    THE 
LEGISLATURES  OF  THE   SEVERAL  STATES. 

ARTICLE  I. 

Congress  shall  make  no  law  respecting  an  estab- 
lishment of  religion,  or  prohibiting  the  free  exer- 
cise thereof;  or  abridging  the  freedom  of  speech, 
or  of  the  press;  or  the  right  of  the  people  peace- 
ably to  assemble,  and  to  petition  the  government 
for  a  redress  of  grievances. 

ARTICLE  II. 

A  well-regulated  militia  being  necessary  to  the 
security  of  a  free  State,  the  right  of  the  people  to 
keep  and  bear  arms  shall  not  be  infringed. 

ARTICLE  III. 

No  soldier  shall,  in  time  of  peace,  be  quartered 
in  any  house  without  the  consent  of  the  owner, 
nor  in  time  of  war  but  in  a  manner  to  be  pre- 
scribed by  law. 

ARTICLE  IV. 

The  right  of  the  people  to  be  secure  in  their 
persons,  houses,  papers,  and  effects,  against  un- 
reasonable searches  and  seizures,  shall  not  be  vio- 


232  APPENDIX. 

lated,  and  no  warrant  shall  issue  but  upon  prob- 
able cause,  supported  by  oath  or  affirmation,  and 
particularly  describing  the  place  to  be  searchedr 
and  the  persons  or  things  to  be  seized. 

ARTICLE  V. 

No  person  shall  be  held  to  answer  for  a  capital. 
or  otherwise  infamous  crime,  unless  on  a  present- 
ment or  indictment  of  a  grand  jury,  except  in 
cases  arising  in  the  land  or  naval  forces,  or  in  the 
militia,  when  in  actual  service  in  time  of  war  or 
public  danger;  nor  shall  any  person  be  subject  for 
the  same  offense  to  be  twice  put  in  jeopardy  of 
life  or  limb;  nor  shall  be  compelled  in  any  crimi- 
nal case  to  be  a  witness  against  himself,  nor  be 
deprived  of  life,  liberty,  or  property  without  due 
process  of  law,  nor  shall  private  property  be  taken 
for  public  use  without  just  compensation. 

ARTICLE  VI. 

In  all  criminal  prosecutions,  the  accused  shall 
enjoy  the  right  to  a  speedy  and  public  trial  by  an 
impartial  jury  of  the  State  and  district  wherein 
the  crime  shall  have  been  committed,  which  dis- 
trict shall  have  been  previously  ascertained  by 
law,  and  to  be  informed  of  the  nature  and  cause 
of  the  accusation;  to  be  confronted  with  the  wit- 
nesses against  him;  to  have  compulsory  process 
for  obtaining  witnesses  in  his  favor,  and  to  have 
the  assistance  of  counsel  for  his  defense. 


APPENDIX.  233 

ARTICLE  VII. 

In  suits  at  common  law,  where  the  value  in  con- 
troversy shall  exceed  twenty  dollars,  the  right  of 
trial  by  jury  shall  be  preserved,  and  no  fact  tried 
by  a  jury  shall  be  otherwise  re-examined  in  any 
court  of  the  United  States  than  according  to  the 
rules  of  the  common  law. 

ARTICLE  VIII. 

Excessive  bail  shall  not  be  required,  nor  exces- 
sive fines  imposed,  nor  cruel  and  unusual  punish- 
ments inflicted. 

ARTICLE  IX. 

The  enumeration  in  the  Constitution  of  certain 
rights  shall  not  be  construed  to  deny  or  disparage 
others  retained  by  the  people. 

ARTICLE  X. 

The  powers  not  delegated  to  the  United  States 
by  the  Constitution,  nor  prohibited  by  it  to  the 
States,  are  reserved  to  the  States  respectively,  or 
to  the  people. 

ARTICLE  XL 

The  judicial  powers  of  the  United  States  shall 
not  be  construed  to  extend  to  any  suit,  in  law  or 
equity,  commenced  or  prosecuted  against  one  of 
the  United  States  by  citizens  of  another  State,  or 
by  citizens  or  subjects  of  any  foreign  State. 


234  APPEXDIX. 

ARTICLE  XII. 

The  electors  shall  meet  in  their  respective  States, 
and  vote  by  ballot  for  President  and  Vice-Presi- 
dent,  one  of  whom,  at  least,  shall  not  be  an  in- 
habitant of  the  same  State  with  themselves;  they 
shall  name  in  their  ballots  the  person  voted  for  as 
President,  and  in  distinct  ballots  the  person  voted 
for  as  Vice-President,  and  they  shall  make  distinct 
lists  of  all  persons  voted  for  as  President,  and  of 
all  persons  voted  for  as  Vice-President,  and  of  the 
number  of  votes  for  each,  which  lists  they  shall 
-sign  and  certify,  and  transmit  sealed  to  the  seat  of 
tne  Government  of  the  United  States,  directed  to 
the  President  of  the  Senate.  The  President  of 
the  Senate  shall,  in  presence  of  the  Senate  and 
House  of  Representatives,  open  all  the  certificates, 
and  the  votes  shall  then  be  counted;  the  person 
having  the  greatest  number  of  votes  for  President, 
shall  be  the  President,  if  such  number  be  a  ma- 
jority of  the  whole  number  of  electors  appointed; 
and  if  no  person  have  such  majority,  then  from 
the  persons  having  the  highest  numbers,  not  ex- 
ceeding three  on  the  list  of  those  voted  for  as 
President,  the  House  of  Representatives  shall 
choose  immediately,  by  ballot,  the  President. 
But  in  choosing  the  President,  the  votes  shall  be 
taken  by  States,  the  representation  from  each 
State  having  one  vote;  a  quorum  for  this  purpose 
shall  consist  of  a  member  or  members  from  two- 
thirds  of  the  States,  and  a  majority  of  all  the 
States  shall  be  necessary  to  a  choice.  And  if 


APPENDIX.  235 

the  House  of  Representatives  shall  not  choose  a 
President  whenever  the  right  of  choice  shall  de- 
volve upon  them,  before  the  fourth  day  of  March 
next  following,  then  the  Yice-President  shall  act 
as  President,  as  in  the  case  of  the  death  or  other 
constitutional  disability  of  the  President.  The 
person  having  the  greatest  number  of  votes  as 
Vice-President,  shall  be  the  Vice-President,  if  such 
number  be  a  majority  of  the  whole  number  of 
electors  appointed;  and  if  no  person  have  a  ma- 
jority, then  from  the  two  highest  numbers  on  the 
list,  the  Senate  shall  choose  the  Vice-President;  a 
quorum  for  the  purpose  shall  consist  of  two-thirds 
of  the  whole  number  of  Senators,  and  a  majority 
of  the  whole  number  shall  be  necessary  to  a 
choice.  But  no  person  constitutionally  ineligible 
to  the  office  of  President  shall  be  eligible  to  that 
of  Vice-President  of  the  United  States. 

ARTICLE  XIII. 

SECTION  I. 

Neither  slavery  nor  involuntary  servitude,  ex- 
cept as  a  punishment  for  crime,  whereof  the  party 
shall  have  been  duly  convicted,  shall  exist  within 
the  United  States,  or  any  place  subject  to  their 
jurisdiction. 

SECTION   II. 

Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  this 
article  by  appropriate  legislation. 


APPENDIX. 
ARTICLE  XIV. 

SECTION  I. 

All  persons  born  or  naturalized  in  the  United 
States,  and  subject  to  the  jurisdiction  thereof,  are 
citizens  of  the  United  States  and  of  the  State 
wherein  they  reside.  No  State  shall  make  or 
enforce  any  law  which  shall  abridge  the  privileges 
or  immunities  of  citizens  of  the  United  States; 
nor  shall  any  State  deprive  any  person  of  life, 
liberty,  or  property,  without  due  process  of  law, 
nor  deny  any  person  within  its  jurisdiction  the 
equal  protection  of  the  laws. 

SECTION   II. 

Representatives  shall  be  apportioned  among  the 
several  States  according  to  their  respective  num- 
bers, counting  the  whole  number  of  persons  in 
each  State,  excluding  Indians  not  taxed.  But 
when  the  right  to  vote  at  any  election  for  the 
choice  of  electors  for  President  and  Vice-Presi- 
deut  of  the  United  States,  representatives  in  Con- 
gress, the  executive  and  judicial  officers  of  a  State, 
or  the  members  of  the  Legislature  thereof,  is  de- 
nied to  any  of  the  male  inhabitants  of  such  State, 
being  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  citizens  of  the 
United  States,  or  in  any  way  abridged,  except  for 
participation  in  rebellion  or  other  crime,  the  basis 
of  representation  therein  shall  be  reduced  in  the 
proportion  which  the  number  of  such  male  citi* 
zens  shall  bear  to  the  whole  number  of  male 
citizens  twenty -one  years  of  age  in  such  State. 


APPENDIX.  237 

SECTION  III. 

No  person  shall  be  a  Senator  or  Representative 
in  Congress,  or  elector  of  President  and  Vice- 
president,  or  hold  any  office,  civil  or  military, 
under  the  United  States,  or  under  any  State,  who, 
having  previously  taken  an  oath,  as  a  member  of 
Congress,  or  as  an  officer  of  the  United  States,  or 
as  a  member  of  any  State  Legislature,  or  as  an 
executive  or  judicial  officer  of  any  State,  to  sup- 
port the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  shall 
have  engaged  in  insurrection  or  rebellion  against 
the  same,  or  given  aid  or  comfort  to  the  enemies 
thereof.  But  Congress  may,  by  a  vote  of  two- 
thirds  of  each  House,  remove  such  disability. 

SECTION  IV. 

The  validity  of  the  public  debt  of  the  United 
States,  authorized  by  law,  including  debts  in- 
curred for  payment  of  pensions  and  bounties  for 
services  in  suppressing  insurrection  or  rebellion, 
shall  not  be  questioned.  But  neither  the  United 
States  nor  any  State  shall  assume  or  pay  any  debt 
or  obligation  incurred  in  aid  of  insurrection  or 
rebellion  against  the  United  States,  or  any  claim 
for  the  loss  or  emancipation  of  any  slave;  but  all 
such  debts,  obligations,  and  claims  shall  be  held 
illegal  and  void. 

SECTION  v. 

The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce,  by 
appropriate  legislation,  the  provisions  of  this 
article. 


238  APPENDIX. 

ARTICLE  XV. 

SECTION  I. 

The  right  of  citizens  of  the  United  States  to 
vote  shall  not  be  denied  or  abridged  by  the  United 
States,  or  by  any  State,  on  account  of  race,  color, 
or  previous  condition  of  servitude. 

SECTION  II. 

The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  this 
article  by  appropriate  legislation. 


THE  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE. 

A   Declaration    by    the    Representatives  of    the 

United   States   of   America   in    Congress 

assembled,  July  4,  ^776. 

When,  in  the  course  of  human  events,  it  be- 
comes necessary  for  one  people  to  dissolve  the 
political  bands  which  have  connected  them  with 
another,  and  to  assume,  among  the  powers  of  the 
earth,  the  separate  and  equal  station  to  which  the 
laws  of  nature  and  of  nature's  God  entitle  them. 
a  decent  respect  to  the  opinions  of  mankind  re- 
quires that  they  should  declare  the  causes  which 
impel  them  to  the  separation. 

We  hold  these  truths  to  be  self-evident,  that  all 
men  are  created  equal ;  that  they  are  endowed  by 
'their  Creator  with  certain  unalienable  rights ;  that 
among  these,  are  life,  liberty  and  the  pursuit  of 
happiness.  That,  to  secure  these  rights,  govern- 
ments are  instituted  among  men,  deriving  their 
gust  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed ; 
that  whenever  any  form  of  government  becomes 
destructive  of  these  ends,  it  is  the  right  of  the 
people  to  alter  or  to  abolish  it,  and  to  institute 
a  new  government,  laying  its  foundation  on  such 
principles,  and  organizing  its  powers  in  such  form, 
as  to  them  shall  seem  most  likely  to  effect  their 
safety  and  happiness.  Prudence,  indeed,  will  dic- 
tate that  governments  long  established  should  not 
be  changed  for  light  and  transient  causes;  and, 
accordingly,  all  experience  hath  shown,  that  man- 
kind are  more  disposed  to  suffer,  while  evils  are 
sufferable,  than  to  right  themselves  by  abolishing 
the  forms  to  which  they  are  accustomed.  But 
when  a  long  train  of  abuses  and  usurpations,  pur- 
suing invariably  the  same  object,  evinces  a  design 
239 


THE  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE. 

to  reduce  them  under  absolute  despotism,  it  is  their 
right,  it  is  their  duty,  to  throw  off  such  govern- 
ment, and  to  provide  new  guards  for  their  future 
security.  Such  has  been  the  patient  sufferance  of 
these  colonies,  and  such  is  now  the  necessity 
which  constrains  them  to  alter  their  former  sys- 
tems of  government.  The  history  of  the  present 
king  of  Great  Britain  is  a  history  of  repeated  in- 
juries and  usurpations,  all  having,  in  direct  object, 
the  establishment  of  an  absolute  tyranny  over 
these  States.  To  prove  this,  let  facts  be  sub- 
mitted to  a  candid  world: 

He  has  refused  to  assent  to  laws  the  most 
wholesome  and  necessary  for  the  public  good. 

He  has  forbidden  his  governors  to  pass  laws  of 
immediate  and  pressing  importance,  unless  sus- 
pended in  their  operation  till  his  assent  should  be 
obtained ;  and,  when  so  suspended,  he  has  utterly 
neglected  to  attend  to  them. 

He  has  refused  to  pass  other  laws  for  the  ac- 
commodation of  large  districts  of  people,  unless 
those  people  would  relinquish  the  right  of  repre- 
sentation in  the  legislature ;  a  right  inestimable  to 
them,  and  formidable  to  tyrants  only. 

He  has  called  together  legislative  bodies  at 
places  unusual,  uncomfortable,  and  distant  from 
the  depository  of  their  public  records,  for  the  sole 
purpose  of  fatiguing  them  into  compliance  with 
his  measures. 

He  has  dissolved  representative  houses  repeated- 
ly, for  opposing,  with  manly  firmness,  his  inva- 
sions on  the  rights  of  the  people. 

He  has  refused,  for  a  long  time  after  such  dis- 
solutions, to  cause  others  to  be  elected ;  whereby 
the  legislative  powers,  incapable  of  annihilation, 
have   returned   to   the   people   at   large   for  their 
exercise;  the  State  remaining,  in  the  meantime, 
exposed  to  all  the  danger  of  invasion  from  with 
out,   and  convulsions  within. 
240 


THE    DECLARATION     OF     INDEPENDENCE. 

He  has  endeavored  to  prevent  the  population  of 
these  States;  for  that  purpose,  obstructing  the 
laws  for  naturalization  of  foreigners;  refusing  to 
pass  others  to  encourage  their  migration  hither; 
and  raising  the  conditions  of  new  appropriations 
of  lands. 

He  has  obstructed  the  administration  of  justice, 
by  refusing  his  assent  to  laws  for  establishing 
judiciary  powers. 

He  has  made  judges  dependent  on  his  will 
alone,  for  the  tenure  of  their  offices,  and  the 
amount  and  payment  of  their  salaries. 

He  has  erected  a  multitude  of  new  offices,  and 
sent  hither  swarms  of  officers  to  harass  our 
people,  and  eat  out  their  substance. 

He  has  kept  among  us,  in  times  of  peace,  stand- 
ing armies  without  the  consent  of  our  legislatures. 

He  has  affected  to  render  the  military  inde- 
pendent of,  and  superior  to,  the  civil  power. 

He  has  combined,  with  others,  to  subject  us  to 
a  jurisdiction  foreign  to  our  constitution,  and  un- 
acknowledged by  our  laws;  giving  his  assent  to 
their  acts  of  pretended  legislation : 

For  quartering  large  bodies  of  armed  troops 
among  us : 

For  protecting  them  by  a  mock  trial,  from  pun- 
ishment, for  any  murders  which  they  should  com- 
mit on  the  inhabitants  of  these  States : 

For  cutting  off  our  trade  with  all  parts  of  the 
world : 

For  imposing  taxes  on  us  without  our  consent: 

For  depriving  us,  in  many  cases,  of  the  benefit 
of  trial  by  jury: 

For  transporting  us  beyond  seas  to  be  tried  for 
pretended  offenses : 

For  abolishing  the  free  system  of  English  laws 
in  a  neighboring  province,  establishing  therein  an 
arbitrary  government,  and  enlarging  its  bound- 
aries, so  as  to  render  it  at  once  an  example  and 
241 


THE  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE. 

lit  instrument  for  introducing  the  same  absolute 
rule  into  these  colonies: 

For  taking  away  our  charters,  abolishing  our 
most  valuable  laws,  and  altering,  fundamentally, 
the  powers  of  our  governments : 

For  suspending  our  own  legislatures,  and  de- 
claring themselves  invested  with  power  to  legis- 
late for  us  in  all  cases  whatsoever. 

He  has  abdicated  government  here,  by  declar- 
ing us  out  of  his  protection,  and  waging  war 
against  us. 

He  has  plundered  our  seas,  ravished  our  coasts, 
burnt  our  towns,  and  destroyed  the  lives  of  our 
people. 

He  is,  at  this  time,  transporting  large  armies 
of  foreign  mercenaries  to  complete  the  works  o: 
death,  desolation  and  tyranny,  already  begun,  witl 
circumstances  of  cruelty  and  perfidy  scarcel) 
paralleled  in  the  most  barbarous  ages,  and  totall; 
unworthy  the  head  of  a  civilized  nation. 

He  has  constrained  our  fellow-citizens,  taken 
captive  on  the  high  seas,  to  bear  arms  agains 
their  county,  to  become  the  executioners  of  thei 
friends  and  brethren,  or  to  fall  themselves  b; 
their  hands. 

He  has  excited  domestic  insurrections  among  us 
and  has  endeavored  to  bring  on  the  inhabitants  o 
our  frontiers,  the  merciless  Indian  savages,  whosi 
known  rule  of  warfare  is  an  undistinguished  de 
struction  of  all  ages,  sexes  and  conditions. 

In  every  stage  of  these  oppressions  we  have  pe 
titioned  for  redress,  in  the  most  humble  terms 
our  repeated  petitions  have  been  answered  on\ 
by  repeated  injury.  A  prince,  whose  character  i 
thus  marked  by  every  act  which  may  define 
tyrant,  is  unfit  to  be  the  ruler  of  a  free  people. 

Nor  have  we  been  wanting  in  attention  to  ou 

British  brethren.     We  have  warned  them,   froi 

time  to  time,  of  attempts  made  by  their  legislator 

243 


THE  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE. 

to  extend  an  unwarrantable  jurisdiction  over  us. 
We  have  reminded  them  of  the  circumstances  of 
our  emigration  and  settlement  here.  We  have  ap- 
pealed to  their  native  justice  and  magnanimity, 
and  we  have  conjured  them,  by  the  ties  of  our 
common  kindred,  to  disavow  these  usurpations, 
which  would  inevitably  interrupt  our  connections 
and  correspondence.  They,  too,  have  been  deaf 
to  the  voice  of  justice  and  of  consanguinity.  We 
must,  therefore,  acquiesce  in  the  necessity  which 
denounces  our  separation,  and  hold  them,  as  we 
hold  the  rest  of  mankind,  enemies  in  war,  in  peace, 
friends. 

We,  therefore,  the  representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America,  in  general  Congress  assembled, 
appealing  to  the  Supreme  Judge  of  the  world  for 
the  rectitude  of  our  intentions,  do,  in  the  name, 
and  by  the  authority  of  the  good  people  of  these 
colonies,  solemnly  publish  and  declare,  that  these 
United  Colonies  are,  and  of  right  ought  to  be, 
free  and  independent  States ;  that  they  are  ab- 
solved from  all  allegiance  to  the  British  crown, 
and  that  all  political  connection  between  them  and 
the  State  of  Great  Britain,  is,  and  ought  to  be, 
totally  dissolved;  and  that,  as  free  and  independ- 
ent States,  they  have  full  power  to  levy  war,  con- 
clude peace,  contract  alliances,  establish  com- 
merce, and  to  do  all  other  acts  and  things  which 
independent  States  may  of  right  do.  And,  for  the 
support  of  this  declaration,  with  a  firm  reliance  on 
the  protection  of  Divine  Providence,  we  mutually 
pledge  to  each  other,  our  lives,  our  fortunes  and 
our  sacred  honor. 

JOHN  HANCOCK. 

New  Hampshire. — Josiah  Bartlett,  Win.  Whip- 
pie,  Matthew  Thornton. 

Massachusetts      Bay. — Saml.       Adams,      John 
Adams,  Robt.  Treat  Paine,  Elbridge  Gerry. 
343 


THE    DECLARATION    OF    INDEPENDENCE. 

Rhode  Island,  etc. — Steph.  Hopkins,  William 
Ellery. 

Connecticut. — Roger  Sherman,  Sam'l  Hunting- 
ton,  Wm.  Williams,  Oliver  Wolcott. 

New  York. — Wm.  Floyd,  Phil.  Livingston, 
Frans.  Lewis,  Lewis  Morris. 

New  Jersey. — Richd.  Stockton,  Jno.  Wither- 
spoon,  Frans.  Hopkinson,  John  Hart,  Abra.  Clark. 

Pennsylvania. — Robt.  Morris,  Benjamin  Rush, 
Benja.  Franklin,  John  Morton,  Geo.  Clymer,  Jas. 
Smith,  Geo.  Taylor,  James  Wilson,  Geo.  Ross. 

Delaware. — Caesar  Rodney,  Geo.  Read,  Tho. 
M'Kean. 

Maryland. — Samuel  Chase,  Wm.  Paca,  Thos, 
Stone,  Charles  Carroll  of  Carollton. 

Virginia. — George  Wythe,  Richard  Henry  Lee, 
Thos.  Jefferson.  Benja.  Harrison,  Thos.  Nelson, 
Jr.,  Francis  Lightfoot  Lee,  Carter  Braxton. 

North  Carolina. — Wm.  Hooper,  Joseph  Hewes, 
John  Penn. 

South  Carolina. — Edward  Rutledge,  Thomas 
Heyward,  Jr.,  Thomas  Lynch,  Jr.,  Arthur  Middle- 
ton. 

Georgia. — Button  Gwinnett,  Lyman  Hall,  Geo. 
Walton. 


244 


00967 


M38202 


THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


